Alter Ego #65 by TwoMorrows Publishing

Roy Thomas’ Cardy- Carrying Comics Fanzine

DC & QUALITY ARTIST

NICK CARDY IN THE GOLDEN & SILVER AGES $

6.95

In the USA

No. 65 February 2007

Plus Art & Artifacts By: WILL EISNER NEAL ADAMS JIM APARO CARMINE INFANTINO RAMONA FRADON MURPHY ANDERSON CURT SWAN LILY ORLANDO RENEE JOE IRV NOVICK BOB HAN LEE ELIAS EY SEKOWSKY MIKE SEKOKY & Many More! BONUS:

Vol. 3, No. 65 / February 2007

™

Editor Roy Thomas

Associate Editors Bill Schelly Jim Amash

Design & Layout Christopher Day

Consulting Editor John Morrow

FCA Editor P.C. Hamerlinck

Comic Crypt Editor Michael T. Gilbert

Editor Emeritus Mike Friedrich

Editorial Honor Roll Jerry G. Bails (founder) Ross Foss, Biljo White

Production Assistant Chris Irving

Circulation Director Bob Brodsky, Seastone Marketing Group

Cover Artist

Writer/Editorial: “The Best of Times... The Worst of Times” . . 2 “When You Do A Lot of Super-Heroes, All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 But Nick Cardy still talks to Jim Amash about those guys and other things.

The Siegel & Shuster Deal At 30 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Nick Cardy

Murray Bishoff helped get the ball rolling for Superman’s creators back in the mid-1970s.

With Special Thanks to: Jack Adams Heidi Amash David Armstrong Allan Asherman Bob Bailey Mike W. Barr Marty Baumann Mark Beazley Alberto Becattini Spencer Beck Allen & Roz Bellman John Benson Daniel Best Murray Bishoff Bill Black Dominic Bongo Richard Boucher Frank Brunner Mark Burbey Mike Burkey Glen Cadigan Nick Caputo Jim Cardillo Nick Cardy R. Dewey Cassell Bob Cherry John Cogan Ray A. Cuthbert Teresa R. Davidson Michael Dunne Mark Evanier Michael Feldman Shane Foley Jeff Gelb Joe & Frank Giella Janet Gilbert Laura Gjovaag Glenn Greenberg Steve Griffin Darrell Grimes George Hagenauer Jennifer Hamerlinck William Harper Heritage Comics Larry Ivie Jonathan G. Jensen Larry Kashdan

Contents

Henry Kujawa Larry Lieber Alan Light Dan Makara Don Mangus Bruce Mason Bob McLeod Sean Menard Clifford Meth Linda Monaco Luis Morales Mario Morales Frank Motler Mark Muller Andy Patterson Lily Renee Charlie Roberts Trina Robbins Herb Rogoff Rich Rubenfeld Constance Schroeder Paul Schroeder Pat Sekowsky Carole Seuling David Siegel Jean Siegel Robin Snyder J. David Spurlock Emilio Squeglio Bhob Stewart David Studham Marc Swayze Richard Deane Taylor Joel Thingvall Dann Thomas Michael Uslan Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. Dr. Michael J. Vassallo Nicholas Viscardi Mike Vosburg Tom Weaver Len Wein Marv Wolfman Lynn Woolley Spiros Xenos Eddy Zeno

The Best “Will” In The World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Another Reinman “Green Lantern” page from that never-published 1940s JSA story!

Hollywood Comes To Hollywood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Golden Age artist Allen Bellman met two Lois Lanes at the 2006 MegaCon!

Comic Crypt: “Oooh…That’s Cheesy!” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Michael T. Gilbert on some not-so-gouda comic book covers.

Comic Fandom Archive: Monsters & Heroes At His Beck And Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Roy Thomas & Bill Schelly tell what little they can about the 1967 Calvin Beck Con.

Tributes To Ernie Schroeder, Dave Cockrum, Mart Nodell, & Andy Warner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 re: [comments, corrections, & correspondence] . . . . . . . . . . 67 FCA (Fawcett Collectors Of America) #124 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 P.C. Hamerlinck presents Marc Swayze, Emilio Squeglio (part 2), and a tribute to artist Tom Laughlin. About Our Cover: The venerable and estimable Nick Cardy painted this cover of himself and a few of the many comic book heroes he’s drawn especially for this issue of Alter Ego. We envy the lucky soul who gets to buy this one off Nick! But what’re you lookin’ at, Batman? [All characters except Nick TM & ©2007 DC Comics.] Above: The pencil sketch for yet another cover drawn by Nick Cardy for a recent publication— in this case, the hardcover Silver Age Teen Titans Archives, Vol. 1. Hope you got paid a little better for that one, old buddy! Thanks to Spencer Beck & Glen Cadigan. [Teen Titans TM & ©2007 DC Comics.]

This issue is dedicated to the memory of

Dave Cockrum, Mart Nodell, Bob Laughlin, Ernie Schroeder, & Andy Warner Alter EgoTM is published monthly 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. Single issues: $9 ($11.00 outside the US). Twelve-issue subscriptions:$72 US, $132 Canada, $144 elsewhere. 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 Canada. ISSN: 1932-6890 FIRST PRINTING.

writer/editorial

“The Best of Times... The Worst of Times”

harlie Dickens had it right… except that it’s probably always both the best and worst of times, depending upon whom you ask. And today’s are no exception.

The best—because it’s a distinct (and even personal) pleasure to spotlight Jim Amash’s nice long interview with artist Nick Cardy, who’s most noted for his artwork (especially covers) at DC during the 1960s and ’70s, but also for his earlier stints at Quality and on the Lady Luck newspaper comic book/strip. Nick is one of the nice guys in our business, as well as a great talent… and it’s a pleasure every year to swap stories with him at the Heroes Con in Charlotte, North Carolina. Hey, Nick—after this interview sees print, you’ll have to conjure up some additional anecdotes, ’cause readers will have heard these already. But I’m sure you can do it! Sadly, however, the past few weeks have been unkind to the comics industry, taking from us a trio of towering figures, each of them singularly important to the field in a different way: Jerry G. Bails, founder of this magazine and of so many other aspects of comics fandom, whose untimely passing this past Thanksgiving was noted in our previous issue, in a last-minute piece… Dave Cockrum, famed for his work on “The Legion of Super-Heroes” and then particularly on the mid-’70s X-Men, for which he co-created Nightcrawler, Storm, and Colossus… and Mart Nodell, one of the last remaining pioneers of the

comic book field, whose “Green Lantern” has proven one of the iconic concepts of the art form. Add to that the fact that we had delayed till this issue tributes to two other recently-departed talents—Ernie Schroeder (who among other things wrote and drew many of the best “Airboy” and “Heap” stories near the end of the Golden Age) and Bob Laughlin (a noted Fawcett artist who passed away last May)—and this issue is, regretfully, far too filled with heartfelt goodbyes to fallen friends and artisans. Still, Alter Ego was conceived in part by Jerry Bails, back in 1961, to honor those who had come before, and what they had done. Marty’s “Green Lantern,” in fact, was one of the first heroes examined in detail in the magazine (by Jerry, as it happens, in ish #3 that selfsame year). And indeed, we’ve already scheduled longer, more detailed tributes to Jerry (in A/E #68), to Dave (in an issue near year’s end), and to Marty (in early 2008)… while Ernie was interviewed in depth for issue #42, three years back. The mission continues… Bestest,

COMING IN MARCH

Spotlight on Bouncin’ BOB POWELL! FROM BLACKHAWK TO DAREDEVIL TO BATMAN!

• Fabulous POWELL cover—featuring Daredevil, Sub-Mariner, The Avenger, Shock Gibson, The Scarlet Arrow, Sheena, Black Cat, The Shadow, et al.—a pulsepounding panorama assembled by MICHAEL T. GILBERT! • “THE PEERLESS POWER OF BOB POWELL!” The life & times & titanic talent of the artist—also showcasing his work on The Hulk, Giant-Man, Cave Girl, Mr. Mystic, Thun’da, Jet Powers, Strong Man, Spirit of 76, Batman bubble gum cards, and more—annotated by ED LANE and the Powell kids—SETH, JOHN, & ROB! Plus related art by WALLY WOOD, HOWARD NOSTRAND, DICK AYERS, JOE SIMON, JACK KIRBY, & others! • “Make Mine MAGAZINE MANAGEMENT!” Editor DAVID GEORGE on MARTIN GOODMAN’s 1960s magazine empire that dwarfed Marvel Comics! Starring MARTIN & CHIP GOODMAN, MARIO (The Godfather) PUZO, BRUCE JAY (Steambath) FRIEDMAN, ERNEST (Shaft) TIDYMAN, GARY FRIEDRICH, DENNIS O’NEIL, ROY THOMAS, & more cheesecake than you can shake DD’s billy-club at! • BLANCHE FAGO talks to JIM AMASH about AL FAGO, VINCE FAGO, Fago Comics, & Charlton’s STEVE DITKO & DICK GIORDANO! • FCA with BOB POWELL, MARC SWAYZE, C.C. BECK, etc.—MICHAEL T. GILBERT on (you guessed it!) BOB POWELL—& MORE!! Edited by ROY THOMAS

SUBSCRIBE NOW! Twelve Issues in the US: $72 Standard, $108 First Class (Canada: $132, Elsewhere: $144 Surface, $192 Airmail). NOTE: IF YOU PREFER A SIX-ISSUE SUB, JUST CUT THE PRICE IN HALF!

TwoMorrows. Celebrating The Art & History Of Comics. TwoMorrows • 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 USA • 919-449-0344 • FAX: 919-449-0327 • E-mail: twomorrow@aol.com • www.twomorrows.com

“When You Do A Lot Of Super-Heroes, All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear” NICK CARDY On Illustrating Comic Books In The Golden & Silver Ages Interview Conducted by Jim Amash

Transcribed by Brian K. Morris

imagine everyone reading this issue already knows who Nick Cardy is and what he’s done, especially since John Coates wrote such a great book on him a few years ago. It turned out to be an easy task, because Nick’s career covers so many bases—and if you need a refresher, a glance at the Checklist on p. 32 will fill you in fast! Unfortunately, we only have a finite number of pages to work with, so we decided to concentrate on Nick’s comic book days—but luckily, a brand new book (see ad on p. 11) deals at length with his newspaper strips, and our sister mag Back Issue #13 recently showcased his 1970s cover art for DC. That leaves us free to concentrate on his work through the mid’70s, which is A/E’s basic franchise, and still leaves us with plenty to cover! So, without further ado, here’s my friend and one of my favorite comic artists (and yours, too, I’ll wager): Nick Cardy! —Jim.

“The Strip That Influenced Me Most Was Hal Foster’s Tarzan” JIM AMASH: Now for the interrogation! When and where were you born? NICK CARDY: October 20, 1920, on the Lower East Side in New York City—on Third Street, between First Avenue and Avenue A in New York City. JA: Gee, couldn’t you pinpoint it a bit more? You probably didn’t hear commercial radio until you were almost a teenager.

When Cardy Carried Carmine (Just Joking, Guys!) Considering all the covers Nick Cardy drew in the 1960s and 1970s for DC editorial director Carmine Infantino, it seemed only fitting to start out with the above photo taken at the 2001 Heroes Con in Charlotte, NC, of Nick holding a snapshot of himself and Carmine taken at the previous con. Both pix by Bob Bailey. He’s flanked here by two of those many covers—for Aquaman #44 (March-April 1969) and Bat Lash #2 (Dec.Jan. 1969)—done for Carmine, and for editors Dick Giordano and Joe Orlando, respectively. With thanks to Mike Burkey & Jonathan G. Jensen for the scans. For more about the Aquaman cover, see p. 22. [Art ©2007 DC Comics.]

CARDY: Radio was just getting popular when I started doing comics, which was about 13 or 14. I did my drawings at home, even before I became a professional. I listened to The Lone Ranger, Sgt. Preston, The Shadow... anything that had adventure,

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

Wannamaker’s, which was a big department store. I won a couple of awards there. At that time, the strip that influenced me most was Hal Foster’s Tarzan, which was reprinted in Tip Top Comics. And then Foster started Prince Valiant, which I liked. I liked Alex Raymond’s Flash Gordon, too, but I favored Prince Valiant.

“And Then Someone Gave Me Will Eisner’s Address” JA: Did the comic book reprints influence you more than the newspaper strips themselves? CARDY: They were in the Sunday paper, and we didn’t get a daily paper. We just got a Sunday paper.

No Genre Left Behind

When I graduated from the School of Industrial Arts. I received the Saint Gauden’s Gold Medal of Honor, because I was the honor art student, but I didn’t get out to receive it because I was backstage with the other guys, painting another mural. I felt bad about it, because my mother and sister were sitting out there. I used to blush red like mad, you know, and I was very self-conscious of that, so I didn’t go out. I should have, I guess.

Nick says one art teacher had him doing murals. Alas, none of those have survived, but we wonder—did they look anything like this pencil rough he did for Warner Bros./The Movie Channel? The finished version appeared as a double-page spread in TV Guide. [©2007 Time-Warner.]

while I drew. You can’t do that with television. I tried that with television once. There was a sequence where a detective was walking to a house, and there was no dialogue, so I felt maybe something was wrong with the TV until I heard his footsteps. JA: Old Time Radio was theatre of the mind, and you had to imagine what was going on in your head. Did radio influence your ability to visualize scenes? CARDY: First of all, my family didn’t have enough money to send me to art school, so I went to the library to look up whatever I needed. And by reading Edgar Rice Burroughs, or some science-fiction, or adult fairytale-type things, I got the sense of storytelling. Later on, I got hooked on movie directors like John Ford, Alfred Hitchcock, and René Claire. If you really want to see some good storytelling, watch the first And Then There Were None [based on the book] by Agatha Christie. JA: So your sense of storytelling came more from the movies and books, rather than radio. CARDY: Yes. Now, in radio—it was storytelling, but it wasn’t something that I was analyzing. After you heard enough shows, you got the rhythm of what they were doing. They’d start with a beginning, and then they’d set up a situation. Then you had the middle sequence, and a happy ending where the villain gets caught. With the Europeans, they end a story in tragedy. I lived in a brownstone building as a youngster. We had a backyard, and I used to play there in the lot. You know, a lot of climbing fences from one lot to another. I used to take a dowel rod from a broom handle. A dowel rod was like the rods they put in the closets to hang your clothes, but they were a little thinner. I’d take a broken broom handle and a little penknife that had two blades, and carve an image. When I was ten, I carved a male and a female back-to-back, locking arms, from the handle of a dowel rod. I still have the thing. [laughs] I made all kinds of things. In art class, our teacher had another student and me do murals for the school. We did the murals of the different things that happened in the classroom. I did one concerning sports, and he did another one that we both worked on in oil. A major New York newspaper printed those two posters. And prior to that, they’d run art contests for Sam

I went to school with Al Plastino and Gil Kane. The ventriloquist Paul Winchell was at the school, too. Elizabeth Murray was my art teacher. She liked my work, but knew I didn’t have any money, so she bought me this thick book that had illustrations by Michelangelo and said, “You should do this.” There was a Boy’s Club where I took art classes. A teacher said, “Here, copy this,” and he gave me a Raphael painting of a child in a Madonna’s lap. While I was at the Boy’s Club, I won three 1st Prize awards for sculpture, and some other prizes for life drawing. The Literary Digest magazine wrote an article about me and printed some of my drawings. And so I had a lot of build-up, in the sense that they said I could sculpt, which gave me some confidence. After I finished high school, I got a job with an advertising agency. While I was there, I did more or less clean-up work and errand-running. They had an illustrator up there that was doing some nice water colors and I learned from him. His name was Weaver. And then someone gave me Will Eisner’s address. The first person you saw when you came in was Lou Fine. Right next to him was George Tuska—next to him was someone else—and there was Charlie Sultan. Bob Powell was there, too. Charlie Sultan drew the most beautiful cars I’ve ever seen. And then sometimes he’d do a head shot, and we used to call it “faking,” where he did the eyes and the profile shape, and then he’d cast a shadow from the left side of his face, going across his nose, and the lower part of his face was black, so it’s very dramatic. [mutual chuckling] In those days, when they couldn’t draw something, they’d put a lot of hay lines over it and use deep shadows. I told the guys he was doing some beautiful cars and they were sort-of grinning. I found out he took car ads out of the newspapers and pasted them in, and they came out beautifully. JA: Were Eisner and Iger still partners? CARDY: Yes. What happened was they were separating. Eisner had his own group, because he was doing books for Quality. Jerry Iger had

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

other guys coming in who were also doing their books. You see. Eisner hired me, and sent me to work with Jerry. Jerry’s place was on 45th Street. It was a new place, it had cement floors, and there were about four or five guys sitting along the window with their tables. And he said that, “Well, you know, we’re expecting tabarets any time. But in the meanwhile, why don’t you go to the grocery store, and get an orange crate.” So I got an orange crate. The orange crate was about Auld Acquaintances 27 or 30 inches high with a little wooden Nick caught up with his old friends in later years. (Left:) Nick with George Tuska, whom he met at the Iger & divider in it. It had cheap slats on it, Eisner shop circa 1939—this time at the 2003 Heroes Con. Photo by Bob Bailey. (Right:) Mr. C. with Will Eisner because they used to import oranges and Comic Buyer’s Guide editor Maggie Thompson, San Diego, 2000. Pic courtesy of Nick; photographer from California or wherever. And so you unknown. (For photos of Jerry Iger of Eisner & Iger, see A/E #21.) took all the debris off [mutual chuckling] and you put your art supplies drew it. There was no one coming in telling you what or how to draw. on top of it. After you’re working there for a while, you could see that the other guys’ crates had ink dropped on them. They were black and “Nick, You’ll Be Going To Work With dirty, so they probably were waiting for tabarets, too, but they never Bill Eisner Now” got them. [laughs] Iger started me out at $18 a week. After a while, he called me aside with this little grin. He had a little puffed lower lip, so when he talked, it was like someone putting their tongue under their lower lip. He was a very short, slight man who wore a thin mustache. He gave me an envelope and said with a smile, “There’s a surprise. You got a raise.” It was a 50¢ raise. [laughter] JA: Were you expected to turn out a certain number of pages for that $18 a week?

JA: Since you were fairly young when you started there, would any people in the shop give you pointers or advice? CARDY: No, that happened when I went up to Eisner’s studio. Bob Powell gave me advice at that time on procedure, page size, lettering space, etc. In 1940, Eisner started doing a Sunday supplement. It was a comic book that went with the Sunday papers. It had The Spirit, Mr. Mystic, and Lady Luck. Chuck Mazoujian was doing Lady Luck when he was drafted into the Army. Iger told me, “Nick, you’ll be going to work with Bill Eisner now.”

CARDY: Well, they gave me a story and I did them as fast as I could. I did “Quicksilver,” which was one of my first assignments—and then I did a few other characters, like “Lee Preston,” “Samar,” and “Wonder Boy.” Somewhere along the line, I also did a “Blue Beetle,” which was published by Victor Fox. Fox and Quality farmed out their work to Eisner & Iger. Iger got some of the work, but Eisner had control of the major titles, like National, Smash, etc. Lou Fine and all the group did that. JA: Were you handed model sheets when you started a different feature? CARDY: No, they must have given me a page that somebody else did, because I had a copy of the costume. And then I did it. At that time, Lou Fine had done some of the figures. I don’t know if he did it for “Quicksilver,” but I tried to emulate the way he did it. JA: You weren’t told to emulate Fine’s work, were you? CARDY: They gave you a script, and you

Jack Be Nimble, Jack Be Quick—Jack Be Silver! The Quality hero Quicksilver—in a 2001 drawing we’ve printed before—eyes the Cardy splash from Quality’s National Comics #16 (Oct. 1941). Quicksilver, as created originally by Jack Cole, was less a super-speedster than a super-acrobat. Today, of course, he’s been rechristened Max Mercury at DC to avoid conflict with Marvel’s later mutant hero. Scan courtesy of Bruce Mason. [Quicksilver TM & ©2007 DC Comics.]

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

JA: You penciled and inked your stories, right? CARDY: Yes. At this time, I was introduced to the Japanese brush. That’s what Lou Fine and Bill Eisner were using. The hairs come out to such a fine point, you could get a finer line with it than you could with a pen, and it held more ink than the pen. In fact, one time, I left the pen in my tabaret and I reached in to get something, and I didn’t realize it, but I must have stuck my finger with that pen. Later on, I was sitting in the rumble seat of a friend’s car with this girl, and every time I put my arm around her, there was this awful pain and my finger started swelling up like a hot dog. They dropped me off at the hospital and the doctor said, “You have an With Spirit And Luck infection in that finger. Eisner’s Spirit and Viscardi’s Lady Luck in action in The Spirit section for April 20, 1941. (For Bob Powell’s Mr. Mystic feature We have to do some that ran at this time, see our next issue!) Thanks to Bruce Mason for the Lady Luck scan; other art is from Will Eisner’s The Spirit Archives, Vol. 2, published by DC. [©2007 Will Eisner Studios, Inc.] surgery on it.” I was lying down on the stretcher, Eisner’s studio was in a luxurious apartment in Tudor City on 42nd and all of these people with their masks around me, and this woman Street, right alongside where the United Nations is now, near the river. doctor was there with her mask on. And I said, “Oh, try and save my It was a two-room apartment. As you came in, you entered the large finger. I am an artist.” [mutual laughter] room (which was fairly large) where you had a desk. My desk was near the entrance to Bill Eisner’s room, facing the wall, right near the door, Well, they sliced my finger all the way through and they put a piece and right in back of me sat Bob Powell, who was drawing Mr. Mystic. like a lasagna in it with a safety pin on. And I had to keep it dunked in Lou Fine had a room all to himself in the same building where Eisner salted water or something until it got better; no penicillin. I still have worked. Occasionally, Tex Blaisdell or Chuck Cuidera would come in, that scar on the finger, but at least they saved it. and every now and then, there would be a David Berg coming in with a writer. Those are the only ones I remember in the room. If I wanted to “You Got The Wrong Guy” know something about procedure, or where do you go to eat, or where do you get your ink, or where’s the art store, or something, I would JA: I want to ask you about the bullpen people. For instance, you talk to Bob Powell. He occasionally wrote the stories, and would were there when George Tuska punched out Bob Powell, weren’t comment, “Well, you do so many panels,” or stuff like that. He liked you? my work and more or less took me under his wing. He was a nice guy. CARDY: No, no, no. He didn’t punch out Bob Powell. You got the If he didn’t like you, he was very caustic. He would tell you what he wrong guy. I spoke with George about this because I heard that rumor. thought. Tuska worked at Harry Chesler’s shop when the incident occurred. Sometimes we’d talk about the story, and I named the character Rafael Astarita was a muscle-builder who always flexed his muscles, called Peecolo. “Piccolo” in Italian means “small.” For the book, I from what I heard. Apparently he was pestering George, and picking spelled it phonetically, “Peecolo.” He was a big guy with a mustache. on some other kids, so George says, “Why don’t you pick on He had this Italian accent. He was in Lady Luck. He was a sidekick somebody your size?’” And Astarita started going for George. This later on. He was like a bodyguard. guy was bluffing George and bouncing around to get him started, and the story I heard was that George took his brush, rinsed it out, wiped The scripts I was given were very loose. The Lady Luck stories it, and put it back on his tabaret. He went up to Astarita, and punched were told in three pages because some of the newspapers didn’t use him, and Astarita went way back, folding a couple of drawing tables on four pages. So one page was a filler, or a fight scene, or something like the floor. George went back to his table, took his brush, and went back that. And as the script went along, I inserted a couple of characters on to work. [mutual laughter] my own, but everything, all the characters, were my own. I tried to work in Chuck Mazoujian’s style. He was pretty good. I never learned My salary at Eisner’s was $25 a week for four pages. So if I did five anatomy that well, so I had to get it from books or any sculpture of pages a week, I was getting $4 a page. Eisner’s studio was the equivalent Rodan or Michelangelo, to see the anatomy. They didn’t have photoof a shop, where a lot of new kids came up to do the art in order to fill graphic magazines at that time. the comic books. And naturally, he was handling the whole thing, so he

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

got his percentage as a businessman. But the guys didn’t give a damn. At least they were getting paid for drawing. Eisner was nice to work for; he didn’t bother you. You worked, and he paid you. He didn’t sit down and socialize with anybody. He probably had a tight schedule even as he was drawing The Spirit. He had the second room in the studio. In fact, the bathroom was in his room. [laughs] Eventually, I left Eisner and went to work for Fiction House. When I was there, so were George Tuska, Bob Lubbers, John Celardo, Dan Zolnerowich (a fantastic artist), Gene Fawcett, and a few other guys whose names I don’t remember. I really got to know George Tuska at Fiction House. Now George was a tall guy; about sixfoot-one, light blue eyes, blonde hair, and when he smiled, his teeth were white from ear to ear. [Jim laughs] He was a very gentle guy. JA: Did Eisner’s storytelling influence your storytelling?

The Italian Job Nick Cardy/Viscardi (seen above left) introduced the Italian comic relief character Peecolo in these panels from Lady Luck for May 18, 1941—at a time when the strip was still signed “Ford Davis.” Art repro’d from the 1980 Ken Pierce trade paperback Lady Luck, Vol. 2; 1940s photo sent by R. Dewey Cassell. Dewey says he doesn’t know the precise year of the pic, but that Nick’s fellow artist John Celardo made the ID. [©2007 Will Eisner Studios, Inc.]

CARDY: Well, we used to talk. Bill loved movies, particularly The Saint movies with George Sanders. While he was working, he kept whistling that theme song. I think those movies may have influenced Eisner into doing The Spirit, which is more or less, I felt, a takeoff on The Saint.

CARDY: Chuck Cuidera was a nice fellow who worked hard, but you didn’t rub him the wrong way. It looked like he was all ready to snap at anybody, and you had to guard what you say. But we got along fine. But I heard that sometimes, he’d get in scraps with people.

JA: Eisner had a woman who wrote for him named Toni Blum.

JA: You also knew Artie Saaf.

CARDY: I remember her. She was a dark-haired girl [whom Eisner dated for a short time]. By the way, did you ever hear the story that Eisner told? In fact, Eisner wrote the story in one of his books. Iger said to Eisner, “Why don’t you come out? I have a couple of girls here.” Eisner said, “No, I’ve got to work.” Iger said, “Well, you sit there too much. Let’s go out.” So Jerry Iger takes Eisner out, and he meets this girl, who was very interesting. Eisner talked to her for a while, and he finally went up to the room and spent the night with her. The next day, he called Jerry Iger and said, “Oh, she’s very nice.” Iger said, “Well, did you pay her?” “Pay?” Iger said, “I had to pay her, you know.” [mutual laughter]

CARDY: He was a character. You know, when we were up at Iger’s, Iger had a habit of walking in—-he was very short, he had his hair pasted down and parted down the side—and he’d walk in with these girls who were so much taller than him. They may have been call girls or something, but they were beautiful. And all us slobs are sitting at the table and he’d walk around, saying things like, “These are my artists. They work for me.” [mutual laughter] Sometimes, while the guys were working, around three o’clock, you start getting drowsy, you start yawning, the room was filled with smoke, too. And so when the guys were just barely awake, Iger would tiptoe in on those gray concrete floors. And he would walk in with this little metal basket, lift it shoulder high, and then drop it. Everybody would jump to the ceiling. [chuckling] And he’d laugh like hell and go to his room.

JA: What do you remember about Tex Blaisdell? CARDY: Tex Blaisdell was a very tall fellow, about 6-foot-4, and very lean, and he had a mop of curly hair that looked like Little Orphan Annie. [mutual laughter] He was always kidding around. He was very pleasant, always had a smile on his face. Sometimes, he’d come out with some little nasty remark about minorities. Sometimes, there was bigotry in those days. JA: As far as prejudice was concerned, Eisner and Dave Berg thought that Bob Powell was anti-Semitic. CARDY: I heard that, but that was general, you know, in those days. JA: Tell me about Chuck Cuidera.

Someone told me—I didn’t hear it or see it—that Artie Saaf creeped into Jerry’s room while he was resting his head on his arms on his desk, took some firecrackers, and dropped them in his wastepaper basket. [mutual laughter] Iger had a one-room apartment that must have been 8-by-8 or 10by-8, and he had a Murphy bed there. And so when I went to deliver something, this black man came out, and it was his butler, Rufus. What is a butler doing in a one-room? I could never figure that out. But I think Iger wanted status. He could say, “My butler answers the door.” You know what I mean?

Samar-Time Frankly, we dunno if Nick drew this figure of Quality’s Samar or not, but he mentions the minor jungle hero, so we figured you might like to know what the guy looked like. Thanks to Bill Black. [Retouched art ©2007 AC Comics.]

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

“Nice Guys And Good Artists” JA: Let’s discuss Fiction House and the people there. CARDY: John Celardo was very good friends with Bob Lubbers, and they used to play golf a lot. They were nice guys and good artists. Bob Lubbers was very fast and loved to draw women. When we were at Fiction House, he decided that he was going to go into the Air Force, and I decided that I was going to try something, but I wasn’t going to enlist. [chuckles] John Celardo went into the Army and became a Captain. Bob Lubbers used to play trombone and once auditioned for the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra. Every now and then, when we used to go to the jazz clubs on 52nd Street, Bob Lubbers would hum the harmony, like he would with his trombone. We used to talk about different trombone players, like Jack Teagarden, and I would talk about the drummers. JA: You worked on staff at Fiction House, didn’t you? CARDY: Yes, and Artie Saaf was pulling some real, real kooky stunts up there. Oh, my, you couldn’t work. A lot of guys, like George Tuska, worked at home so they could concentrate. The writers and the editorial staff were in another room, separated from the crazies. [mutual laughter] I remember most of the guys that worked there came from poor families, with the possible exception of Bob Lubbers. I’ll describe one of Artie Saaf’s jokes. Sitting next to Lily Renee was Jean Lavander, who did production work. She wasn’t an artist, but she was a very jovial, short person. Jean was big-bosomed and when she used to stop and give you something at the table, she’d hand the

drawing or something over the table, and she’d sit there and she’d sway from side to side with her body. Artie Saaf got a whoopee cushions, and slipped it under her chair. Instead of the whoopee cushion going like “pphhhhht,” it just exploded. [mutual laughter] And Jean got so angry, and got so red, and Artie Saaf was laughing like mad, and I thought that was cruel. I really did. Tuska was very quiet. He used to just shake his head from side to side, you know. And Zolnerowich was very quiet in his corner and you never heard a peep from him. It was a distracting workplace. I liked working at home better. JA: Saaf didn’t mean to be cruel. He was just being juvenile, wasn’t he? CARDY: Oh, yeah. He was just a prankster. I had a funny feeling that he was the type that, if anyone played a joke on him, he would have gotten very mad. He was one of those guys that could dish it out, but couldn’t take it. JA: I’ve heard that before. Tell me about Lily Renee. CARDY: Lily Renee had a very slight foreign accent. I don’t know what country she came from, but she was a very good artist. When I stopped drawing “Señorita Rio,” she took it over, and did a nice job. She must have been around 18, 19, when I met her. She was a goodlooking girl, but she stayed pretty much to herself. It’s rough on these people, because everybody’s making passes at them. You know, at that age, it must have been rough for her. On April Fool’s Day in 1943, I was drafted and that ended my Fiction House work for three years. There was a woman there, Jean Press, who had eyes like Perry Mason [when played by Raymond Burr], very large eyes. She wore glasses, had dark hair, and was a little on the plump side. Jean was an editor there. And she worked next to Larabie Cunningham, who was a nice guy. I think he was a writer. JA: How about Frances Hopper? CARDY: Fran Hopper married Artie Saaf. She was a nice girl, very quiet and unimposing, and cute. She was very easy to talk to. I was always shy with women.

Spoiling For A Fight Nick drew “Señorita Rio” both before and after his service during World War II, and the splash panel at left may well be from the 1947 period rather 1942-43—but “N. Viscardi” did a good job on what Bill Black calls “Fiction House’s glamorous spy.” So did Lily Renee (photo), who drew the feature in the middle ’40s, as per the splash at right from Fight Comics #35 (Dec. 1944). The photo is courtesy of Lily Renee & Trina Robbins; both specimens of Fight Comics art are from Bill’s aptly-named AC Comics reprint title Good Girl Art Quarterly – Summer 1991; see AC’s ad on p. 67. [Retouched art ©2007 AC Comics.]

Now that I think about it, Lily Renee sat near the door that went into the editor’s room. Next to her was Jean Lavander; and next to her was Frank Doyle. Frank Doyle was a slight fellow, very quiet, easygoing. And next to him was Gene Fawcette, and they were along that wall. I think, later on, Lee Elias sat near that wall. I think it was Lee Elias, then Lily Renee, and then Lavander and Fawcette. And then as you went around the bend, there was, on the opposite wall,

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

CARDY: It ended in an “i.” Cat Yronwode wrote a story that I changed my name because, at the time, there was bigotry against the Italians, and to hide, to protect myself, I changed my name. Well, that isn’t the truth. I was doing some covers for the small magazines and some advertising jobs. This was when they were having the Senate hearings on Costello and all these mobsters, and they also had the Kefauver hearings on comics. When I went to these places, I’d hear crap like, “You’re Italian. Oh, you’re the guys that carry the stilettos.” At the end of the month, they would give me a check. Instead of “V,” as in “Victor” for my first name, they would put a “P” so I couldn’t cash it, so I had to wait for the next month. The next month would come on, it’d be with a “B,” and these guys were laughing. And a lot of them were Jewish. You see what I mean? You would think that, being bigoted against all these years, they would know better.

Dan Zolnerowich, and then there a sandy-haired artist named George Appel. Gene Fawcette was a good artist. He was very good at drawing World War I planes, or any planes, really. He was upto-date on all of them. They used to poke fun of him, but he was a good sport. Lee Elias came in later. His work was a complete takeoff on Milton Caniff. He kept very well to himself, very quiet. Joe Doolin was a cover artist. I don’t remember him too well. But he did a lot of covers, didn’t he? What Zolnerowich didn’t do, he did. JA: You did a variety of features at Fiction House: “Camilla,” “Buzz Crandall,” “Captain Wings,” “Flint Baker,” “Jane Martin,” “Ka’anga,” “The Lost World,” and “Señorita Rio,” among others. CARDY: In those days, they didn’t give you 24 pages. I think each book had a little bit of everything. Because of that, I was able to do so many different features. JA: How much did Fiction House pay you per week? CARDY: I was getting anywhere from 35 to 40 dollars, or around that. At the end of the year, I went home with a $300 bonus, too. I remember going home and looking at my family. I gave $50 to my mother, $50 to my sister, [chuckles], and they were so tickled to death. “My son, the artist.” [mutual laughter] But it was nice to give them the money, you know.

JA: Is that when you became “Nick Cardy”?

They Wanted Wings

CARDY: That was after the war. I came back and got into a studio with Al Plastino, Jack Sparling and his father, and Dow Walling, who drew a daily newspaper strip. I was also doing freelance work, and that’s where I met my wife at a cocktail party. And then these incidents started happening with the check, and so I decided to change it, and she didn’t say anything. And so I changed it and they said, “If you’re going to do it, you might as well make it legal.” So I went and legally changed my last name. Later on, my sister told me that my mother was very upset. Well, she’s of old Italian descent. My parents couldn’t speak English. They fumbled around with it, and so when you’re a kid, you went to school, you learned American ways, the history and all that. When you went home, you’d say, “Ma, talk English.” They used to do that. [chuckles]

Some years back, Bill Black’s AC Comics line obtained the right to reprint all of Fiction House’s material—and an early result was this Captain Wings #1, which utilized Bob Lubbers cover art from the cover of Wings Comics #90 (Feb. 1948). Lubbers was a star at Fiction House in the early ’40s, too. You’ll find some Nick Cardy art lurking in various “Captain Wings” stories, as well. [Retouched art ©2007 AC Comics.]

JA: Okay, now when you did the pulp illustrations for Fiction House, did you do that through Malcolm Reiss? CARDY: I think it was through Malcolm Reiss and some of the people in the other department, because I illustrated one Western, and one jungle story. JA: Did it bother you when you had to work under a house name? CARDY: No, it didn’t bother me as long as I got my check, [laughs] because I figured everybody did the same. In fact, sometimes, when you were doing it—this was with Eisner, or anything with comics—in those days, if you showed a guy some work, they said, “How do I know you did that?” I says, “You look under the second rung of the chair. In the crosshatching, there’s my initial there.” [Jim laughs] Then later on, in one of the Lady Luck stories, I wrote my name, “Viscardi”. In fact, Bob Powell wrote a story where the villains were trying to steal the Viscardi diamond. [chuckles] Very few artists signed their work, so we occasionally snuck our names into the stories.

“If You’re Going To Do It, You Might As Well Make It Legal” JA: Since we’re into names, this is a place to ask you about your name. Now, your last name at birth, was there a “y” or an “i” at the end?

JA: So why do you sometimes sign with an “i” and sometimes with a “y”? CARDY: When I was doing comics, it was with a “y.” When you went to advertising companies, anyone connected with comics had a dirty name. In fact, Jim Mooney told me, “Comics was a very dirty word.” So when I went to advertising agencies, I didn’t want to use the “Cardy” name that was associated with the comics. I did sign some movie posters that way, because as the years went by, some of the editors were comic book fans. So when I came in, they said, “Jeez, you did ‘Superman.’” JA: Before we move away from this subject, I noticed that when you did covers for DC in the 1970s, sometimes you signed “Nick Cardy,” sometimes you used your initials, and sometimes you didn’t sign at all.

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

Hanging Out Washing On The Siegfried Line

CARDY: Well, I’ll tell you why. Because I used to sign my name, and for some reason or other, they paste a blurb over it. So then I started putting my initials way at the extreme border where the spine hit the page, you see, because they’re not going to cut it. [laughs]

A quintet of 1945 photos from Nick’s experiences at the tail end of World War II. (Clockwise from top left:) Nick in Germany, sporting a mustache (“the rage for the guys in 1939-40s”), both solo and with some Army buddies (Nick’s at far right)—at the drawing board “after V-E Day at Information & Education Section at Versailles, France”— atop a tank, waiting for orders to move out—and a pic he snapped of one of the stars of the film classic Casablanca. Nick says, “Ingrid Bergman was very gracious when I took her photo in Germany.” Pics, of course, are courtesy of N.C.

business. I think Tuska and Ruben Moreira, at that time, were exceptional— Ruben Moreira, more so. He was very good. I liked him. I knew him better when he worked for DC. We’d talk about art, mostly.

JA: Let’s go back to Fiction House: Graham Ingels was there in ’43. CARDY: I got to like him because he liked opera, and I went out to his house on Long Island, and we’d talk about opera. He was a good artist. I also knew Ruben Moreira; a fantastic artist. He was one of the best in the

You know, when you’re freelancing, you bring in a job, you may bump into a guy and talk for a little while. And then, you go your separate ways. The only socializing that we used to do was in a place next to DC. We crossed the street, but it was a little bar and they had a lunch in the back. And the guys would go there and have a drink before they went home. JA: Do you remember Sam Savitt? CARDY: Sam Savitt was a great horse artist. Later, he published some books on horses. Bob Lubbers used to live out in Great Neck, Long Island. I would go up to Bob’s house and he would take me to the Whitney Stables. And I would sit there and draw horses.

“When I Got Home…”

Back On The “Rio” Another Cardy “Señorita Rio” splash page for Fiction House— probably from Fight Comics #52 (Oct. 1947)— juxtaposed with a photo of Nick taken that same year in New York’s Central Park. By now he’d lost the mustache. Page repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Jonathan G. Jensen. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

JA: You left Fiction House and then you were drafted into military service. You were discharged in 1946. CARDY: When I got home, I didn’t have an apartment. I stayed with my mother for a while where she lived in Long Island. And a group of artists had a studio in Manhattan: Al Plastino, Jack Sparling, and a guy named Dowling, who used to do a daily strip. He used to draw a little girl’s strip or something. We shared the rent, and Gil Kane used to come up. I did most of my samples there. In 1947, I met my wife, we got married, and we moved into an apartment. JA: Tell me about Al Plastino. CARDY: He was very quiet, but at times he was a bundle of nerves. He loved to go hunting, and I didn’t like killing animals, but I went out with him. We drove out in the

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

country to shoot game—no, he went out to shoot game and I would find a nice little barn. I’d take my watercolor pad, and make some sketches, things like that. One time, while I was drawing, I heard this big explosion. And I looked, and Al Plastino came back, cursing like mad. He was looking around and he couldn’t find any game, so he put some of his shells from his rifle on a stump. He was looking for rabbits, or squirrels, or something like that, and so he shot at this box of ammunition and everything just exploded. [laughs] And out of this stump jumped about two or three rabbits, [mutual laughter] running all over the place. Al was a golfer. The National Cartoonists’ Society used to have outings at Fred Waring’s home. There were pictures in a magazine where Al Plastino was standing next to Jackie Gleason and a few of the other stars. [NOTE: See the Plastino interview in A/E #56.] But I didn’t play golf. It wasn’t my thing, you know? But Al, Bob Lubbers, and John Celardo were golfing fans. Later, when Al was drawing the Batman newspaper strip, he fell behind schedule and asked me to pencil the dailies, which he inked. You could still see my drawing underneath his inks. When we went to the School of Industrial Arts, Al and I did a mural together. It was a 4-by-8 mural. He did the figures and I did the heads. And I don’t know if we ever finished that or not, but I have part of a photograph of that. JA: What do you remember about Jack Sparling? CARDY: Well, he was a nice guy, very fast in his work. He once did a sculpture of Vice President Garner. JA: When you started doing comic books again, you went back to Fiction House.

CARDY: Well, no. I was doing color illustrations for very small magazines. And then I did the Tarzan and Casey Ruggles strips, while looking for work at advertising agencies. JA: Okay, here’s what I have: I have you doing Tarzan in 1950; I have you ghosting Casey Ruggles in ’51 and then again in ’52 and ’53. I have you coming back to Fiction House after the war and doing more “Camilla.” I have you, in 1947, doing “Señorita Rio.” I also have you doing some crime comics for Quality in 1948 and then in 1952 and ’53. CARDY: Oh, I forgot about that. And then my first DC job was— JA: I have Alan Ladd, 1949. CARDY: Oh, I don’t remember that, but a lot of people have it listed. The first one I remember was Gang Busters. JA: Gang Busters, I have as you started in there in ’48. I also have you working for Ziff-Davis from ’51 and ’52, and for St. John in 1948. When you started working for Ziff-Davis, you were already working for DC. CARDY: To be honest with you, my memory on my Ziff-Davis and St. John work is very dim. JA: I understand. I have one more company to ask you about before we discuss DC, and that’s Standard Publications. I have you there in 1952 to ’53. The editor-in-chief at Standard was Joe Archibald.

www.artoriginals.ca

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

I only did the dailies on Tarzan. I thought to myself, “Now I’ll get to draw a lot of the animals in the jungle; the apes and the trees.” It only happened in one sequence, where he’s swinging through the trees. I was so disappointed. Sometimes, there were some jungle scenes when I got on the periphery of the action, but it wasn’t Tarzan the way I would have liked to have drawn Tarzan. JA: Now were you instructed to do it in anybody’s style? CARDY: No, no, no. When I saw Burne Hogarth’s stuff at United Features, they said, “Any Tarzan strips there that you want to take for reference, take them.” But I didn’t care for Burne Hogarth’s work, you see. His fight scenes are almost like monuments to the veterans. You remember, those guys raising the flag at Iwo Jima? The groups of fighters looked like they were sculpted for a monument. [chuckles]

Coming On Like Gang Busters Two early stories Cardy drew at DC were this crime saga from Gang Busters #6 (Oct.-Nov. 1948) and this backup feature for The Adventures of Alan Ladd #1 (Oct.-Nov. 1949). The former mag was based on a very popular radio series, which spawned the slang phrase used as the heading for this caption. Thanks to Mark Muller for both scans. [©2007 DC Comics.]

CARDY: Joe Archibald, that sounds familiar. I remember Mike Peppe, who edited and inked. Later, when he came to DC, he was inking, and he was a very close friend of George Tuska. Their families were very close. Mike’s brother was a boxer, I think. They had a nightclub that he was a manager of, named A Quiet Table. Mike Peppe was a nice guy, very macho, who was sometimes out of work. His father-in-law was a superintendent of a high-rise apartment, and Mike Peppe used to help him out. And he had quite a time with the ladies up there. But that’s another story. He was a good-looking guy and he knew he was good-looking.

JA: Right, they’re stiff. Looking at your other work at the time, the Tarzan work was a little more lush than your comic book then. Do you feel that way?

CARDY: When you’re younger, your eyesight is so acute that you can do anything. After a while, I started eliminating a lot of the hay, because a lot of the artists used to cover up weak draftsmanship with a lot of detail and shadows. I decided to put my time in drawing for accuracy and leave out the hay. If I’m going to put anything, I’ll put solid blacks to accentuate something, you see? And I did that through

“I Only Did The Dailies On Tarzan” JA: Let me ask you about Casey Ruggles. Did you assist Warren Tufts? CARDY: I never spoke to Warren Tufts. The syndicate was looking for someone to do Casey Ruggles. They must have got my name from somewhere, so they had me do it. I did it in spurts. I don’t know if Tufts was ill or not, but he was late on the schedule, so I filled in. All of Tufts’ faces were based on Alex Raymond’s style, so I tried to keep it in his mold. I did the complete art.

Cardy Strips! Specimens of Nick’s Casey Ruggles and Tarzan newspaper strip work. Thanks to Sean Menard. (See ad on p. 11.) [Casey Ruggles ©2007 the respective copyright holders; Tarzan ©2007 Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.]

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

every job that I did. I could follow my work from when I did Tarzan and it was still lush when I got in DC, and then I started loosening up. You’re stepping up in class when you’re doing a daily strip. So you want to show that you can do a daily strip, so you put a lot more time in it. JA: Did you do thumbnails before you did a page? Or did you work directly on a page? CARDY: I worked directly on a page, because I had never done a comic strip before and I was doing what everybody else was doing. But I’d make little thumbnail sketches on a side piece of paper if I want to do a caricature. If he had a big nose and no chin, I would try to do different views of that, see if I liked it. And if I didn’t like it, I’d play with the characters, and that’s the only doodling I did. In regard to page layout, I worked directly on the page with a light pencil, integrating balloon placement into the actual drawing area. And if I needed to add an extra panel to create tension or mood, I did so.

“I Needed Something Else” JA: In my opinion, the late ’40s, early ’50s was one of your first great developmental periods. Do you agree with that? And if you do, why do you think that was so? CARDY: The way I look at it is that I wanted to get good accuracy in my figures, features, and everything else. So I finally got them down to what I felt was right, and my lines were just fine, but they were still very tight drawings. Now with Lou Fine, the lines were so thin that when they reproduced, some of them disappeared. And so I figured I’d use a heavy line at Fiction House. I used a Winsor & Newton Series Seven #6, before working my way down to a #3, because I saw my lines had gotten too heavy. By the 1950s, my figures looked good, but I needed something else. I didn’t want to over-render my drawings. I studied Robert Fawcett’s work as well as Nicolai Fechin, Ben Stahl, Al Parker, Coby Whitmore, John Gannom, and others. Most of the characters Fawcett drew were from photographs, because he used the same guys over and over again in his illustrations. He did a whole series on Sherlock Holmes that were fantastic—all line, no featuring—and accurate. The decorative things: vases, the louvered doors... he did everything just right and he did it all with different-colored inks. I saw he had a nice bold black line that comes around the figure, and I thought, “That’s great. That’s what I need: a little body in my stuff, not to make it solid black, but just give it a little body.” And so I picked up a little from him. And then there was a guy named David Stone Martin. He did very loose pen and inks, the way I did when I drew those bathing beauties in France. [laughs] He used a very flexible pen in order to convey emotion. I learned from his work. I could draw a girl who had very nice delicate features, and then slap the black in her hair to give it body,

Giving Murray B. Some Space Murray Boltinoff (photo) was the first editor at DC to use Nick’s work. Here are two pages from a Cardy-drawn story from My Greatest Adventure #22 (July-Aug. 1958); scripter unknown. At this time, as Jim Amash notes, Boltinoff, George Kashdan, and Jack Schiff were co-editing a number of mags under titular editor Whitney Ellsworth. Art scans courtesy of Spiros Xenos. The photo appeared in the 1970s house-produced fanzine Amazing World of DC Comics. [Art ©2007 DC Comics.]

and put blacks around her face to accentuate the delicate lines. When you put a jacket on a guy, you put a heavier stroke with a brush, so you can feel the material. And it’s all these things playing together that became a part of my learning process. JA: Well, everything starts to change for you in this period. Your folds became more organic and more realistic. It looks like you were doing mainly brushwork. CARDY: I always worked in brush, unless a face was very small; then I used a pen. Either that, or sometimes, I’d make an outline of the figure and draw some pen lines going down, fading. You know, very light pen lines so you knew they were a shadow in the distance. JA: You were also starting to look at fine artists like Degas at this time, weren’t you? CARDY: Degas influenced me before that. Of course I went to the Louvre in Paris, and it was a revelation. And I tell you, through Degas and a few of the artists, I was also influenced by the Japanese. The Japanese had such simplicity, and first of all, their costumes blur the whole thing. You know, their dress and the hairdos? Did you ever see Hokusai’s “Breaking Waves”? They were all curly-que and one wave breaks, but each wave has a little circle in it. But you learn simplicity from that and Hokusai—all those famous Japanese artists—and I learned from the Chinese artists. Anything that had to do with line stimulated my experience in my art.

“Show It To Murray Boltinoff!” JA: When you went to DC, I’m assuming that they didn’t call you. You went to them, right? CARDY: Yeah, I went to them. I worked for Murray Boltinoff all the

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

tore into Mort Weisinger. Gene Colan had his troubles with Bob Kanigher. Kanigher was quite a character. He looked like he was angry when you looked at him. [laughs] You know, he had that look. Well, with Murray, when you came in there, and he had a job... this always used to break me up. He was a very serious person. He very, very seldom laughed, but he was kind in a lot of ways. So when I’d come in, sitting there for a while, he says, “Hey, Nick. Come with me.” I said, “Where?” He says, “Come on,” so I’d go. He’d go to the bathroom, stand at the urinal, and I’m saying to myself, “What the hell am I doing here? [mutual laughter] I don’t have to go,” and he’d walk out. I told this to Ramona Fradon, and she said, “Oh, Murray was a nice guy. He was very nice,” and I said, “Did he ever ask you ever to go to the bathroom with him?” [mutual laughter] And she said, “No, no, no.” She said, “Well, Murray was a nice guy,” and she did most of her stuff with him. And she liked—loved Joe Orlando, but she said he was a letch. [laughs] JA: Murray’s been described to me as a guy who looked over his shoulder a lot and was kind-of nervous. CARDY: Well, he was a little nervous. I always felt that sometimes, when Murray was sitting there, doing his job, he looked like he’d rather be someplace else. You know what I mean? He did his job and he wasn’t emotional about it. He knew what was right as far as writing and the art. He gave me the script, and sometimes I didn’t follow the script completely. If there was a panel where I could include part of one panel and another panel; and then on another one, maybe I’d add an extra panel to add a little more emphasis, or something like that. He gave me that leeway. But I think sometimes, when you came in at, say, one o’clock or something, he got very upset. He had to come from Long Island, drive down to New York, [mutual chuckling] and go to work in the morning, but we freelancers came in whenever we wanted. I think he resented the acts of the other guys. But he got a pension and I didn’t. [laughs]

time I was there; he was a nice guy. Murray Boltinoff was, according to Arnold Drake (whom I agree with), the best editor in the business, but nobody ever told Murray Boltinoff that. They used him as a workhorse. Whenever someone would come in to DC, they’d say, “Show it to Murray Boltinoff!” He was the one you went to, so I went to him first. JA: Do you think that might have also been because Murray might have been more open and maybe more responsive than some of the other editors? CARDY: Well, my opinion, when I think back on it now, is that they had a pecking order and I think that Mort Weisinger was a big pecker. [mutual laughter] Mort was at the top of the pecking order, over Julie Schwartz, and so he couldn’t be bothered with details. Mort Weisinger looked at you as if you were supposed to be in awe of him. He was a very big man and he was like the rabbit in Alice In Wonderland. He says, “I’m late,” and you go inside, he’s talking on the phone, he says, “Okay,” and you see him and he says, “I’m in a hurry,” and he’s always going somewhere. He may be just going to the bathroom, but he was doing something. But I never dealt with Mort Weisinger. JA: And you were lucky. [laughs] CARDY: Yeah, because a lot of people didn’t care for him. On the panel in San Diego, they were talking about the guys, and they really

Murray was babysitting his five-year-old son at work one day, and the kid was jumping around. Murray said, “Sit over there,” while he’s talking to me, “Sit over there, read a comic book.” The kid said, “I read all the comic books.” So Murray says, “Well, here.” He took a box of pencils and says, “All right, sharpen them.” I went out to clean up a page and I brought the stuff back, and heard Murray yelling, “What did he do?” The kid took all the pencils and he sharpened them clear up to the ferrules. [mutual laughter]

“No One Ever Inked My Pencils, Because They Were Very Ethereal” JA: There was a time period where Murray, George Kashdan, and Jack Schiff all kind-of worked together. Do you remember it? CARDY: I remember Jack Schiff. I liked him, but I don’t know if he was Murray’s senior or not. It seemed like he was. Jack was very pleasant, always had a pipe in his mouth; he was a lean, tall fellow. He wasn’t very tall, but he was a nice guy, very quiet. My dealings with him were very minimal. JA: You brought your pencils in to be lettered and then you inked them, right? CARDY: Yeah, I just penciled them. I don’t know if I showed them the pencils. Later on, I didn’t have to show them the pencils. JA: Would Murray critique your pencils? CARDY: No, no. Well, maybe the first few times. Like he had a scene in Gang Busters where these gangsters were supposed to kill this guy, go out the fire escape, and fire machine guns at him and kill him, and I

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

didn’t care for any violence. I very seldom showed blood in my stories, because kids were reading the book. I don’t want to see this guy drilled with bullet holes, so I had the guys open the window from the fire escape, and they’re looking at the guy, and then you could see the machine guns going off. I put the guy in the shower and a curtain was there. You see the bullets going through the curtain, maybe a little silhouette—you didn’t see any blood, and then you may see a silhouette arm up in the air or something. You didn’t get the blood effect. Or, if I had to draw a woman who’s going to be killed while sitting at a vanity table, I would show the feet of the killer; and then going up towards the knees, you see a blade. The guy had a hand with a blade in it, and she’s singing, and then he goes inside, and you can hear her screaming, but you don’t see him killing her. I left that to the imagination of the readers. Everyone has a different way of looking at a scene, so you let their mind work for them, because you want them to participate. JA: So your pencils were fairly complete before you inked them? CARDY: No one ever inked my pencils, because they were very ethereal. I knew where I was going, but if I had three or four lines delineating the side of an arm, the inkers wouldn’t know which one to follow. And sometimes I’d go between the lines or if I changed my mind, I would erase it and put the leg over a different place. I had a rough idea where it was going, then I could put a little snappy line right in there. And then if I’d find that the upper side of the leg was a little too thin, I’d correct it. I felt the things out and sometimes, when I had a figure and I put a nice shadow on the underside of the leg, I didn’t draw an outline on the other leg. I would bring some object, put a black in it, and let the lines of—say you’re putting a chest of drawers and you’re showing half a chest of drawers, you’d have the lines going across. As soon as they hit the leg, they stop and that makes the outline for the figure. The only problem with that is, sometimes, you can’t get the colorist to follow it. [laughs]

we don’t have to do that. We can do that here and send it down there.” See, so that tripped us. [laughs]

“[Sol Harrison] Rubbed Me The Wrong Way” JA: Sol wanted to make sure you stayed in your place, is that it? CARDY: Well, Sol, he was very efficient. But you remember a movie actor named Lionel Atwill? Sol reminded me of Lionel Atwill when he was at his meanest. [Jim laughs] He’d come up—he never said anything bad to me. Say that there’s a water fountain, and I’m drinking, and he’s standing there. I’d say, “Hi, Sol.” He’d just look at me, see. He wouldn’t say anything. One time, I was cleaning up pages in this little room that the artists came in, and Sol came in the room, and stayed right up against the desk. I was the only one in the room. He’d come up, staying at the desk, he looked at me, and I looked up, “Could I help you?” And he’d just look for a while and then he turns around and walks out. And so I spoke to Dick Giordano, “What’s with Sol Harrison? You know, the guy bothers me. I mean, he doesn’t say anything, but he sort-of bothers me.” And he says, “No, he’s all right.” And so I figured it must be something I’m doing, but he rubbed me the wrong way, in a sense. One time, I went to an advertising agency and showed them my work. It was a big agency and the art director said, “We want to do

JA: [chuckles] That would always be a problem. Now let’s finish up with Murray. Did you feel that Murray was a little on the insecure side? CARDY: Well, he had moods and sometimes, he was good. Sometimes, he didn’t talk a lot, and sometimes, he was irritated. So I figured he may have had problems at the office, but he also may have had problems at home. Who knows? JA: I just wondered if the fact that Murray was not on the highest rung of the pecking order maybe had something to do with the way he was. You see what I mean? CARDY: Yeah, I know, but I think that Murray didn’t get into that sort of crap. There was some infighting in the offices. One guy’s watching what the other guy is doing and Jack Adler said that Mort Weisinger said, “You come in and give me some gossip about these people, and I’ll take care of you.” He wanted to know what the hell everybody was doing, you know, but that’s the sort of thing that was in the office. When I did Aquaman, Jack Liebowitz had the people come in the office. I went there and a few of the guys like George Kashdan and Sol Harrison had just assigned something with some Australian outfit to do Aquaman animation. And Liebowitz says, “Well, look, why don’t we send the artists down there?” Sol Harrison said, “Well,

“I Became President Of DC Comics” Production head Sol Harrison (left) was not one of Nick’s favorite people… but in his own realm he presided over such fare as the artist’s story for My Greatest Adventure #12 (Nov.-Dec. 1956)—and went on to far loftier heights. The photo is from Amazing World of DC Comics; thanks to Mark Muller for the scan. [Art ©2007 DC Comics.]

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

A Boone To Mankind A pair of Cardy pages from Legends of Daniel Boone #1 (Oct.-Nov. 1955), in the wake of the Disney Davy Crockett craze, when several other companies, including Quality Comics, had “Daniel Boone” series, so DC added “Legends of” to the title. With thanks to Spiros Xeros. [©2007 DC Comics.]

something like a billboard poster with you—with Superman, and it will be for England,” and she wanted me to do the job. And I opened my mouth, saying, [chuckles] “You’d better check with DC before you do that. When you go up there, tell them that you want me to do it.” So when she went up there, I never got the job and I asked her what happened. She says, “Well, they gave it to someone else,” and so I went to Carmine.

want to lose me for anything, so he laid into those guys, but it was no good.

I said, “Carmine, I’ve been doing advertising with the Wonder Woman character for Hardee’s food chain and I did some big banners, and I did some other things. And this here, I got the account. She came here to talk to someone, and she spoke to Sol Harrison, and they gave it to somebody else. I got the account and I didn’t get the job because they wanted my work.” Carmine called Sol Harrison and he says, “Well, she didn’t say she wanted the artist. I told her we have a lot of artists that draw Superman,” and Sol loved Neal Adams.

And then I saw Sol Harrison’s son one day. He was a weak little fellow, he looked very anemic. The son was almost bald, his hair was falling out, so I figured Sol had problems at home. I figured maybe it’s me, you know, so I let it go at that. I should say that Sol was a very business-oriented person who was very concerned with how DC ran.

So when I went up to Neal Adams’ studio for something, I saw Dick Giordano drawing the Superman cover for this project. I was supposed to get $500 for that and I asked Dick, “What are they paying you for that?” He said, “I’m getting $150.” You see? Sol Harrison must have given it to somebody else, and I got mad and told Carmine, “Look, I get a lot of these agencies that want me to do work, but I’m not going to fool around. I’m not going to tell you guys that they’re looking for the work. I’ll just keep it to myself. I’ve been honest with you guys.” And that’s what happened. Did you ever see that E.F. Hutton commercial where the company says when this company talks, everybody listens? So when I got angry, everybody looked at me. “Nick never gets angry.” [laughs] Carmine loved my work and didn’t

They had, in the supply room, supplies if you needed something. And they had this big drum, and stacks of comic pages, and Sol was tearing them up. It felt like a concentration camp-type thing, you know? But apparently, everybody did it.

“I Liked Drawing Features Set In The Past” JA: All right, let’s talk about a couple things here. Daniel Boone and Tomahawk had a certain commonality because the time period is early America. CARDY: Yeah, and I loved the American Revolution. I loved the history of that era, so I did a lot of research when they handed me Tomahawk. Their clothing was part of the accuracy. And I did that with Tomahawk, and it carried on to Daniel Boone, but my Daniel Boone artwork was a lot looser than my Tomahawk. Oh, before we get onto that—while I was working for Murray Boltinoff, there was a writer who used to write “Congo Bill.” In one of the scenes, he had Congo Bill standing in some bushes and he says to

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

another character, “You see that hyena? Jump on the hyena and run to get help because the hyena’s the fastest animal in the jungle.” [Jim laughs] Now, I had done all my research on Tarzan and the Museum of Natural History and so I told the writer, “The hyena isn’t the fastest animal in the jungle.” He says, “What are you bothering me with this stuff for?” And so he let it go. Then on the same book, they’re trying to cross a plain and there’s a rhinoceros. Congo Bill says, “We won’t cross here. We’ll wait. He’s going to charge that zebra because the zebra’s his favorite meat.” And I tried to tell him, you know, “I hate to butt in on it again. [chuckles] A rhinoceros is herbivorous. They don’t eat meat. “ He says, “Are you trying to break my chops?” So we fight and left it in, but I got all the fan mail. Don’t you know that the things that I told him, all the kids knew it, but he didn’t, you see? I liked drawing features set in the past, because I liked drawing the Indians, the costumes, and the animals, and I had complete freedom on that. And in fact, my drawing of Daniel Boone was a caricature of the guy who wrote it. I forgot what his name was. He was a very short fellow, he had this very little, short nose, and, well, I made Daniel Boone look a little handsomer. When I did “Congo Bill” or Tarzan, I did my own research. I went to the Metropolitan Museum of History, and they sent me upstairs to where the explorers displayed their photographs. That was interesting. As for animals, I did a lot of research on them, because the stride of a horse, as compared to a bear, is different. They still have the same anatomy like, say, a human in a sense, but some of the parts are shortened and lengthened. You’ve heard of Eadweard Muybridge, haven’t you? [Jim said he has] He was the first one to study this. There was big controversy for centuries; they didn’t know when the horse ran if all four feet were off the ground at the same time, and he proved that. He put all these cameras about a foot apart and as the horse tripped the wires, it clicked and you could see all the feet were off the ground at a certain point. His books were very helpful to me.

JA: I’m not thinking in terms of the trappings and the settings quite so much as I’m thinking about the storytelling, the pacing, the camera angles. CARDY: Well, I did it pretty much the same way. I think in terms of camera angles and things like that. Usually the story opens with a long shot to set the first scene. And as you gradually pan in to that setting, you may have a house that’s prominent and you can have a particular window there. You can cast the shadows of another part of the building, but that window is very central. And you put another little close shot where you can see these people talking through the window in the office. Once you get there, then you’re into the story. Then what you do is, if this is a “Congo Bill” or whatever it is, you know he’s going to go on a mission, so what happens is you’re going to get a close-up of him talking and maybe a close-up of the people. Once you get the close-ups, you’re establishing the hero and what he looks like, and his determination [chuckles] or he’s ticked off at getting going to another job. So you set the mood and then you go back to a long shot again, you see? First, he’s talking with his friend, and then you could have a time lapse where they say “Meanwhile” or something— “Back at the ranch.” [mutual laughter] JA: But I’m thinking, for instance, when you’re doing Gang Busters

JA: You did Gang Busters off and on during the ’40s and the ’50s, I see. Here’s what I have: 1948 to 1951, I have you doing some work again in ’54, and ’57, and in ’58. CARDY: Oh, well, you know at that time, I didn’t have a steady feature. They bounced me around. JA: You didn’t mind, did you? CARDY: No, no, because I was still experimenting, and some of them, I didn’t mind because they weren’t in super-hero costumes. You see, they were in regular clothes, and that’s where you learn your drapery and how a drape folds from a knee, or from an elbow, or from a shoulder, and those were learning exercises. JA: You did some House of Mystery and House of Secrets off and on, in the ’50s. CARDY: Oh, I did Unexpected, House of Secrets, a whole batch of them. I did some of my best work on those things. That’s because it wasn’t super-heroes. I could work with characterization and each cover was an illustration. They didn’t relate to the stories in the book. So I could put a little more time into them, and play with cover design for maximum effect. JA: Because Daniel Boone and Tomahawk were period pieces and “Congo Bill” is a setting piece, did you find your storytelling harder on the cops-and-robbers stuff you did on Gang Busters? CARDY: Yes. I’d do a little research on what they wear. In the case of “Congo Bill,” I researched Africa, as I told you before. Certain parts of Africa have a lot of foliage, but you don’t have that foliage if you’re near the desert. You see what I mean? That sort of thing.

Bongo, Bongo, Bongo, I Don’t Wanna Leave The Congo, Bill This striking splash page from Congo Bill #6 (June-July 1955) shows that Cardy was better than most comic book artists at drawing wildlife. This was the penultimate issue of the solo mag starring the hunter who’d started life in 1940 as National/DC’s mustachioed answer to Alex Raymond’s Jungle Jim. Along the way, he’d even starred in his own movie serial! Thanks to Spiros Xenos. [©2007 DC Comics.]

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

or those Alan Ladd backups—I’m picking them because they had so many interiors, because they involve more perspective drawing. But when you draw outdoor scenes, you have to handle perspective differently because you don’t have door and windows. CARDY: Then you take advantage of the locale. If they’re walking towards a certain place, instead of walking between buildings, you could see a long shot... maybe a giraffe is drinking or you see the characters walking in the distance through the giraffe’s legs. You draw some lions eating a carcass, and your characters are walking in the background. You use the environment to place them there, and use animals as props.

“I Hated Drawing Something With A Straight Line” JA: Let me contrast this with Aquaman. When Aquaman’s underwater, isn’t that a little harder to deal with depth of field, because the environment is different?

And say the light is coming from the left and it’s hitting the leg or the body on the left side. The shaded side would need a darker line for the body shape. Sometimes, instead of drawing the outline on the lighted side of the leg, you could put an object, or something that’s black or has a tone, that would come up to the leg and create a visual line. And then you could just continue where the object doesn’t come against the leg; you continue the line from where it ends off with the black background. It’s almost like painting. When the brush I was using lost its point, I’d use it to put my shadows on the side of the figure. And even if the line broke off a little, that’s okay. If someone’s wearing a sweater, I would use a #3 brush on that and stipple—you know when the ink is dry on a brush before you dip it? It’s almost like a dry brush. If you want to stipple along the trousers, if it’s heavy trousers, you could stipple it right along the edge of the line. It softens the line a little. With a girl’s face, you use a very fine, delicate line. You ink her dress a little thicker so you could feel the fineness of her face. That’s that perspective thing. And with a man, I would use a regular line and then put in his heavy hair. It’s all playing with line. That’s all it is.

CARDY: If Aquaman’s swimming in the water, maybe over a coral reef, in the distance, you can get perspective by fish or objects in the water. If he’s over a coral, it may be dark underneath—which I’d show with dark horizontal lines—and then you could see the top of another coral, or something like that, and the background dissipates into the dark. You create your own perspective with water, fish, or kelp. You work your black and whites with the environment that Aquaman’s in. If someone’s swimming by rapidly, you draw a fish swimming alongside him, or maybe a sea lion going up by him and showing more of the wake of the air bubbles behind him, or maybe show bubbles right in front. It doesn’t have to show the fish. You could see the bubbles. JA: What were your favorite kind of settings to do? What did you find easiest? What did you find more challenging?

“We’re Going To Have [Aquaman] Marry This Girl” JA: How did you get the Aquaman job? CARDY: Ramona Fradon was drawing it as a back-up feature in Adventure Comics. Then it got a little more popular, so they had me take over the series in Showcase, but I don’t believe I drew the first cover. But I did everything after the first issue, clear to [Aquaman] #39. I did all the covers.

Maybe It’s A Picture Of A Man Smoking A Pipe?

JA: You were doing 8-page backups in House of Secrets and House of Mystery, and suddenly you’re back to a regular main title. Did you prefer to do an entire book, rather than just be one artist in an anthology book?

CARDY: I preferred doing an entire book. The only thing is that, sometimes when you CARDY: Well, I’ll tell you, I hated drawing Nick says of this photo, taken sometime in the do a lot of super-heroes, all you’re drawing is buildings. I hated drawing something with a 1950s: “Can’t remember what I was painting!” men in long underwear. [laughs] I got some straight line. [laughs] I did it if I had to, you know, but it was such a nuisance because you’re not doing it freehand. jobs on The Brave and Bold that I liked. That was some of my better I used a ruler that was about six inches long and prop it on my fingers. work. Although I was dealing with Batman, there were other characters I’d use a brush, prop the ruler on my fingers about a half inch off the in civilian clothes, so I could do a lot of characterizations, which I paper, and I’d put the fingers holding the brush right against the edge, enjoyed doing. and come down and draw my line like that. But if it’s a line where it JA: When they introduced Mera in Aquaman—you told John Coates goes into perspective, I’d use a pen. But I’d prefer things that are in the that you weren’t given any direction to follow. You designed her on woods, in the fields, or in the water, anything away from straight lines. your own. JA: So you had more of a feel for the organic, rather than the CARDY: Oh, yeah. They said, “We’re going to have him marry this geometric. girl.” I developed Mera’s look on my own. They didn’t tell me what to draw or have to approve a character sketch. After a while, they trust CARDY: Yes, and you know, with the geometric, I’ve seen a lot of you. guys—the present artists today included—who draw things, but they don’t put perspective on it, in a sense. JA: I thought because she became a major character, they might There were a lot of little things I learned from the illustrators. If you have paid a little more attention. could make something that’s self-sufficient in silhouette, you make CARDY: There was a little argument about having Aquaman get everything subservient to that silhouette. In other words, if you have a married and have a child. They figured that girls adore heroes, but line of a building, instead of coming right down to the figure, just let when he gets married, the girls give up hope. [mutual laughter] They that line fade off, maybe about a sixteenth of an inch before it hits the figured the kids don’t want a hero as a married man. They want him as figure. The color will continue down beyond the line. single, as close to their age as possible. At that time, I was drawing

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

Three For The Briny Deep (Right:) Three seaworthy talents, in a photo taken in San Diego, August 1998 (l. to r.): artists Nick Cardy and Ramona Fradon, and sometime “Aquaman” writer Bob Haney; photo by David Siegel. (Top left:) Ramona’s splash for Showcase #30 (Jan.-Feb. 1961), Aquaman’s first-ever full-issue appearance…though she also drew a story of the Sea King for Adventure Comics #282 (March 1961). (Top right:) Nick Cardy’s splash for Showcase #31 (March-April 1961). Both Showcase tales were scripted by Jack Miller. For more such underwater action, pick up a copy of The Aquaman Archives, Vol. 1. [Art ©2007 DC Comics.]

Global Warming? No— Global Drying [Left & far left:] A Cardy sketch done for collector Laura Gjovaag—and his dynamic cover for Aquaman #37 (Jan.-Feb. 1968), depicting the hero and his beloved Mera. The latter, too, is repro’d from a scan of the original art, minus the story title, “When the Sea Dies….” The script inside was by Bob Haney. Yeah, Mera looks in bad shape… but it’s that poor walrus we really feel sorry for! With thanks to Heritage Comics & Dominic Bongo. [©2007 DC Comics.]

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

were golfing all the time—I never play golf, but say we were golfing—and we’re good friends, you stop and eat at my house and I eat at your house. When you get promoted, I know the way you think, and I think you’d be more lenient. Carmine knew the effect the other people had on him when he was a working artist, so he was more understanding about what the artists needed.

these books for 15- or 16-year-old kids. So Aquaman and Mera had a baby. Now, I was away from Aquaman for years, and one day I asked, “How’s Aquaman?” They said, “Well, he’s changed. He’s got a goatee now and he had an arm chopped off, and his wife died.” See, when you have editors like Boltinoff and Julie Schwartz, they continue what was successful for them. But when you get a lot of new, young editors that have a fireball burning in them, they think, “We don’t want to follow the old way,” so they’re going to try all these new things, you see. And so you can’t deny youth. You know, it’s progress. But still, it’s like drawing Santa Claus with a leather jacket and a motorcycle. [mutual laughter]

JA: Carmine was an artist, and Irwin Donenfeld and Jack Liebowitz were not. Carmine certainly recognized what an asset that you were to the company. Don’t you feel like that helped your standing?

JA: Who had the idea to marry Aquaman and Mera? CARDY: I think that was between the editor, George Kashdan, and the writer, Bob Haney. I worked well with both of them. If I wanted to change a panel, they would let me go with it and adjust. JA: You said there was resistance to marrying Aquaman off. Who was giving the resistance? CARDY: Well, I just heard the waves about it. I don’t know where it came from, but the story went ahead.

The Brothers Kashdan Nick’s mention George Kashdan gives us a chance to correct an unfortunate error made in A/E #62, in paying a brief tribute to the late DC editor. This photo provided by his brother Larry shows George on the right, Larry on the left…not vice versa, the way we had it. We apologize for the error.

Now, when we created “Bat Lash,” we went to a bar downstairs from where the publishing company was: Carmine Infantino, Dick Giordano, Joe Orlando, and me. We were talking about the character and Joe Orlando says, “Why don’t you make this guy a food gourmet?” because Joe liked to talk about his cooking. And someone else said, “Why don’t we put a feather in his hat? He loves flowers,” and we bounced it around and developed the Bat Lash character. When they liked your work, they gave you a lot of leeway.

CARDY: Because of Donenfeld, I was almost ready to leave. It’s a long story, but I’ll tell it. One day I said to George Kashdan, “I’ve been here a while. Is there any chance of getting more money? I’ve never gotten a raise.” So we went to Irwin Donenfeld and George said, “You know, Nick’s been working here a long time. Is there any chance of giving him a raise?” Donenfeld, with a poker face, said, “No, I don’t think so, because I’m trying to get rid of a lot of the deadwood around here.” And by that time, I had done Aquaman for a long time. It was a good seller, and I had done The Teen Titans, which was also a good seller. I was up to Teen Titans #12; it wasn’t Batman or Superman, but they were stories that people were interested in. I didn’t get the raise so I decided to hell with him, and the next job I was going to do was the Christmas issue of Teen Titans. I figured I’d do a bang-up job on that and then quit. I told this to Carmine and he said, “Nick, hang in there for a while. Things are going to change around here.” JA: The other day, John Workman and I were discussing how your work changed with that Christmas story. Your work started getting even more expressive. Was it just the raise discussion or the story that brought about the change?

“The Change [When Carmine Infantino Became Editorial Director] Was Quite Immediate”

CARDY: First of all, I loved the takeoff on Dickens. I figured, well, I’ll put a little more stuff into my work and show them. After that, Carmine took over, and gave me some other jobs. But, you know, I don’t remember if I ever got a raise or not, after all that. [laughs]

JA: Irwin Donenfeld was certainly old school, kind-of stuffy, I think. When Carmine Infantino became the editorial director, DC seemed to loosen up. How strongly did you feel that change? CARDY: Well, the change was quite immediate. There were a lot of old-timers that sort-of resented him, because he got this job. But he did boost up the sales of the company. I knew Carmine before he became the president, and our relationship didn’t change. Say you and I

JA: Are you telling me, from the ’50s to the ’60s, you never got a raise?

Yule Be Hearing From Nick Cardy! Both Nick and interviewer Jim Amash—among others—feel that the cover and story of Teen Titans #13 (Jan.-Feb. 1968) marked a distinct change in Cardy’s work. [©2007 DC Comics.]

CARDY: No, I don’t think so. Well, they may have brought up the page price up a buck or two. With the covers, at first, I used to get fifty bucks a cover and then it went to 60 or 65. And that was it. But there was a lot easing up when

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

Carmine took over. I don’t know how it affected Sol Harrison or Jack Adler because they were old school, but flexible. I think they liked Carmine from the beginning because he was always working there. But there’s always going to be people that resent somebody else. Carmine let the artists have more freedom. He hired editors like Dick Giordano, Joe Kubert, Mike Sekowsky, and Joe Orlando, who were also artists. What happened was that the artists got some leeway, and if they went to an editor that was an artist, the editor would say, “Well, you know this panel is a little more important. Why don’t you crowd this and make this a little circle instead of a panel?” JA: George Kashdan would not have done that, would he have? CARDY: No, no, he wouldn’t have, but he was very understanding of my work, and he gave me leeway because everybody liked my work except Donenfeld. I don’t think he ever saw my work. He was just looking at the sales figures and the covers.

“I Was Getting Waterlogged Anyway”

“Smile! You’re On Candid Comic Book!” Nick Cardy and one of his biggest fans in the late 1960s & ’70s, then DC editorial director Carmine Infantino—with a few folks in between—in a photo taken at a surprise birthday party for super-collector Skip Farrell in August 1999, in Burlington, Vermont. (Left to right:) Inker Joe Rubinstein… Nick… retired DC editor Julius Schwartz… Skip & Shannon Farrell…Frank Giella (son of Joe)… Golden Age & Dondi artist Irwin Hasen… artist/inker Joe Giella…& Carmine. Hey, that team could’ve put together an entire issue of The Flash for Skip, and then some!

JA: What was George Kashdan like? I’m trying to get an idea what he was like at the time you worked with him. [Shortly after this interview was completed, George Kashdan passed away. —Jim.]

CARDY: We’d talk about the story. He was very understanding. We didn’t socialize, and I never socialized with Bob Haney, though sometimes I’d go down to a bar before going home. George Kashdan would be sitting there with Bob Haney or some of the other writers, and I’d stop and say “Hi.” JA: When you did the Aquaman covers with George, would he tell you what he wanted on the cover? CARDY: He gave me the story, and when I saw the story, I’d pick a scene and say, “This would be a nice cover,” and I designed it. The cover would depict a scene from the interior story. JA: Once Carmine became the cover editor, he designed the covers. CARDY: He designed almost all the covers, because he’d had a lot of sales success with

More Sunken Treasure According to Bob Bailey (who’s pictured with Nick at the 2002 Heroes Con), Cardy continued to draw all the covers for the issues of the first Aquaman series, even after the late Jim Aparo took over the interior art. So Bob kindly forwarded both the cover and splash for Aquaman #50 (March–April 1970); script by Steve Skeates. From co-creator Paul Norris to Fradon to Cardy to Aparo—the Sea King was blessed by a bunch of talented illustrators! (Incidentally, Alter Ego #69 will be an “Aquaman Special,” featuring interviews with both Paul Norris and Ramona Fradon!) [©2007 DC Comics.]

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

JA: There is an Aquaman cover that was supposed to be for the cover of Aquaman #44. Aquaman’s upside down, tied up, hanging from the dock. You drew the cover, and then it was altered. Why were changes made? Who was unhappy with it? CARDY: I don’t know what happened. These gangsters had him tied up at the edge of a pier and his head was about six inches from the water. Then I did another version which looks almost the same. I can’t understand what the big deal was. When you’re working in your cubbyhole with an editor, you’re working there. Once you get it into on the upper floors, there’s a different feeling about the covers. You’re not in control any more. JA: Jim Aparo told me that when he took over Aquaman from you, he thought you’d had some warning that you were going to be replaced. Jim said, “Well, Nick made those last couple of Aquaman stories so good that it was impossible for me to follow him because the art was so good.” CARDY: Oh, I never heard that. That’s good. [laughs] That’s nice to hear that. I never met him, I never spoke to him, and I just knew the name. JA: When you knew you were leaving Aquaman, did you take the same attitude you had with that Teen Titans Christmas story, to do extra? CARDY: No, no, nothing extra. I didn’t know he was going to do it.

The Deep-Six Detective Just as the Sea King was making the transition from Adventure Comics to his own title and Ramona Fradon was departing the feature, Nick Cardy drew this “Aquaman” page for Detective Comics #293 (July 1961). Scan from original art provided by Laura Gjovaag. [©2007 DC Comics.]

his covers. But after a while, you would see duplicates of that cover with a different character. I did a cover where an unconscious Superman is being carried on the shoulders of some soldiers in the rain. Then I did another cover with Aquaman on the shoulders of some characters. He was knocked out, and it was more like a funereal type thing, you see. And then I saw Neal Adams doing the same thing on that. They were all just variations on a theme that Carmine thought would attract the readers. He had certain ways of doing a cover, and when you saw the cover at an angle, you knew that was Carmine’s idea, because he liked unusual camera angles. JA: Describe the process of doing a cover with Carmine. CARDY: He did the layouts, and he was very understanding. He’d say, “I’d like it this way,” and then I would make little suggestions. I said, “What if I made this more prominent to that?” And we’d play around with it. He respected my work, and never said a cross word to me; he always praised Talk About Sea Power! me. Generally, I followed his ideas, though I designed One of the most dramatic drawings all the Aquaman and most of the Teen Titans covers we’ve seen of Aquaman. Nick’s done it again! [Aquaman TM & myself. ©2007 DC Comics.]

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

Silver Is As Silver Does In July 2000 DC issued a brand new “Silver Age” tale of the Teen Titans, with art & cover pencils by Nick Cardy—and script by Marv Wolfman, who’s written the characters both in late 1960s and in the 1980s’ New Teen Titans. This dynamic cover—whose “X” design really draws the eye into the picture—was inked by Dave Gibbons (right). Nick’s original layout below is courtesy of Jim Cardillo, forwarded by Glen Cadigan. Thanks, guys! [©2007 DC Comics.]

With the Titans, there were four characters first. And then Speedy joined the group. It was a little more work, but it was different. Since they were kids, I used simpler line work. I didn’t put in a lot of hay. I made it like you would make a cartoon where they could put a lot of color in. I worked it so the lines would have their weight, but they were open for color. It was only when I did like a “Teen Titans” for The Brave and the Bold that I went into heavy shadows. JA: Wasn’t that a matter of artistic temperament as much as anything else? CARDY: Well, I was experimenting. If you look at my work, you could see one job looks different than another. One time, Gil Kane said to me, “I saw the job you did. I can always tell your work.” Gil Kane was nice that way. I said, “How the hell could you tell my work?” He says, “Oh, I could recognize it.” I always figured maybe

JA: Did it bother you to give up Aquaman? CARDY: Well, no, it was just that I was getting waterlogged anyway. [mutual laughter] I started getting prunish. [more laughter] I was ready for another challenge.

“You Have All Those Characters To Draw” JA: Speaking of challenges, it is certainly harder to draw a team book than a solo super-hero title. CARDY: Right. That’s the only part that bothered me. I like one or two characters. When you have five of them, it’s just like doing the Fantastic Four or the Justice League. You have so many heroes going back and forth. I think what they should do is usually try to feature one or two; the others will be back-up characters. But you still have all these characters to draw. With The Teen Titans, it took a little longer to draw a page because of the number of characters. At first, I put the same amount of time— in fact, it’s more time, because with the water, you don’t have to put windows, you don’t have to put buildings. You just put a line of waves and sometimes, when I was rushed, I couldn’t spend the time putting all the fish that belonged there, see? And sometimes Sol Harrison said I didn’t put enough fish in there, which was true, but I was so deadlined, because by the time you draw one fish—you can’t use one fish, you’ve got to put about 50 of them if you’re putting in a school. But there’s ways of faking it. You put in one big fish, and the others smaller behind him, and then dots for the rest. [mutual laughter]

A Titans Triple Play (Or More) A page from Teen Titans #10 (July-Aug. 1967), autographed by Nick to collector John Cogan—who sent a copy to Glen Cadigan—who forwarded it to us—all for you! Script by Bob Haney. [©2007 DC Comics.]

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

Lash was the type of character that, if he could get away with something, he’d get away from it, and he’d only shoot somebody if he’s defending himself. If someone robbed a bank and he brought the guy in, he would tell him that he also got the money. JA: Well, “Bat Lash” had humor in it like Maverick did. CARDY: Yeah, it was like they wanted to make him a Maverick. He wasn’t a villain; he was on the gray, gray, gray side, and I made him that way. JA: I think it’s the second issue where you did some writing. CARDY: It seemed like something that I wanted to do. While I was drawing the other issues, I figured, well, I’d like to try something funny. Like when he was getting married in this church and the girl’s father and all the relatives are pointing their shotguns at him to get him married. [mutual laughter] I decided that, before he went to the church... it was almost like Mark Twain-type humor, where he got the kids to get all these mice and caterpillars, whatever vermin they can find, and crawl up to the attic beams and drop them on a word or a look from him. And all these women started screaming—it started a diversion and he took off. Toward the end, I told Denny O’Neil, “Look, Bat Lash got this money, he’s going to this tavern and he’s really going to be cool. He’s going to find himself a girl and have dinner with her. So he finds this

I’d get a style, but I never knew what my style was because I was always experimenting. But these fellows always knew my women. If I wanted a girl who was very regal, like Mera, I would think of Grace Kelly. But I wouldn’t copy Grace Kelly; I would do a Grace Kelly type. It’s like when I drew Commissioner Gordon in The Brave and the Bold. I had Lee J. Cobb in mind. I knew what he looked like, and drew him from memory. If I wanted a nice little snappy little girl, I thought of Susan Hayworth. When you get a little girl with a turnedup nose, she becomes more juvenile than a girl that has an aristocratic nose like Grace Kelly or Ava Gardner.

“It Was Like They Wanted To Make [Bat Lash] A Maverick” JA: Your artistic approach on Bat Lash seemed a little different than Aquaman. CARDY: I started with tight pen and inks in the first story, but toward the end, I tried to get more dramatic. I treated it like a director directing a movie, and I tried to have continuity in the way that things moved. Toward the end, I got into a loose effect that worked for me, and a lot of people liked it. I also did a Brave and the Bold [#92] with a Jack the Ripper-type villain, so I drew a lot of lines to create the fog. Some people said, “Your work changed.” But I tried to create the mood of the drawings of that time and the fog effect, you see. And with the first “Bat Lash,” I used a lot of lines. Instead of using a crosshatch where you’d go diagonally one way and diagonally the other way, I did like a little squiggle.

From Batman To Bat Lash

When Bat Lash was doing something serious, I used heavier shadows; but when a scene was humorous, I lightened up a little. Bat

A page from Bat Lash #5 (June-July 1969), repro’d from the original art. With thanks to Bob McLeod, pro artist and editor of the new TwoMorrows mag Rough Stuff. Script by Sergio Aragonés & Dennis O’Neil. [©2007 DC Comics.]

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

girl, and he’s talking to her, and he’s giving her the old Ronald Coleman, ‘Oh, darling, your eyes are like liquid pools.’” And Denny did such a beautiful job on that. In the middle of that romance, just before they kiss, I had this little kid pop up and say, “Daddy.” And the girl slaps Bat Lash on the head with her purse. She didn’t know. She thought it was his daughter and he was cheating on his wife. [mutual laughter] And then the girl walks off and he says, “Why did you do that?” Bat Lash had put this little girl in an orphanage with this Two Of A Kind woman, and he left her Collector Jonathan G. Jensen sent us photocopies of these two Cardy-drawn pages from Bat Lash, figuring they might be worth one of his bags of gold reprinting in A/E. And who are we to argue? The page at left, at least, is from issue #1 (Oct.-Nov. 1968). [©2007 DC Comics.] so she could take care of the kid. At the end, CARDY: He was a nice guy. Jack Adler was a tight guy. [chuckles] she says, “Why do you bother me? Why did you do this?” He said, “It Jack Adler was never wrong. [laughs] He was always talking about was the first flower of spring and I want to give you the flower since cameras. He said, “Well, this camera’s a great camera for this, here.” you like flowers.” And so he hugs her and then as they’re walking Then I looked at the same camera at a photographer’s store and I saw along in the distance, she says, “When I grow up, I want to be just like some photos and sales things on the camera he was talking about, and you.” And he says, “Oh, I hope not.” told him about it. He says, “Well, they don’t know what they’re talking JA: Did you write a script? about.” [laughs] But he was a nice guy, I liked him. CARDY: Well, mainly, I said, “This is happening here and there,” and then Denny did the writing and we worked on the plot together. He put in the dialogue. JA: I want to ask you another Teen Titans question. Do you remember a story that dealt with racism that was not used? CARDY: I started to do it, and then they said, “Stop doing it.” I didn’t know what happened until I read about it in the fanzines, and what Marv Wolfman told me. JA: In this particular story, I think there was Lilith and Mal, and they had a kissing scene. Since Mal was black, it apparently made someone nervous. CARDY: Oh, that was Marv Wolfman and Len Wein’s first story. They latched onto the coattails of Neal Adams and they were around him— well, they came around to my place, too. When the story was canceled, they started protesting, and got Neal Adams to help out. I think DC was thinking of sales, and they figured they’re going to lose a lot of their Southern readers. They didn’t want to take that chance, so they canceled it. That’s my feeling.

“Mainly Business” JA: I want to throw some names at you and see what you remember about them, starting with Jack Adler.

JA: Did you know Eddie Eisenberg? CARDY: He wore metal-rimmed glasses and always watched the Stock Market. I said, “What are you doing?” He says, “Well, if you have $500 that you don’t want to worry about, then go into it. But if you’re using your spending money, forget it.” And that’s all I remember of him, except that he worked in the production department. JA: Do you remember Raymond Perry? CARDY: He used to sit in the corner. He used to do watercolors of people. He was a very nice, quiet man, and I wanted to stop to talk to him sometimes, but I was so late, you know. I couldn’t sit and chat. I had to catch a train, you see. I would have trusted his coloring more than anybody else’s, because he was a good watercolorist. JA: Did you spend any time with Neal Adams? CARDY: Oh, no. He was always busy, but every now and then we’d chat, though not for long. Neal Adams is a nice guy. I think he gave the business a good shot in the arm. He took away the old way of doing things in production. Neal had worked in an advertising company and brought their way of working to comics. And he revolutionized comics because he was an illustrator. JA: Did you have much occasion to chat with Murphy Anderson? CARDY: Every now and then. When I first came to DC and was working in the bullpen, they had this radio on and this announcer kept

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

Well, they paid their part, I paid my part, you know. When he got a little heavy on his drink, he was almost glassy-eyed. JA: Did you ever feel like Mike was an unhappy man? Because he drank a lot. CARDY: Well, he used to drink a lot, and I think he had something that he had to prove. But he had something that used to bug him. If people came in and he didn’t like them, he’d give them that stare and his face—his hair was white, his complexion was very white, and his eyes were pale blue. And he was tall, and had slightly curly hair, so when he looked down at you, it was looking like a Viking without the club. He had a lot of presence; he’s there and sometimes

“Swanderson”—Meet “Carderson”! (Above left:) Murphy Anderson, well-respected as an artist in his own right, is also noted as the inker of Curt Swan’s pencils, as in this panel from Superman #248 (Feb. 1972), repro’d from a photocopy of the original art sent by Eddy Zeno. (Above right:) Bob Bailey, who sent this scan of the original art of the cover of Action Comics #428 (Oct. 1973), says: “Murphy inked the poster of Superman on the cover. It really shows on the face and torso. The rest of the art is pure Cardy.” [©2007 DC Comics.]

talking and talking. So finally, I went in there to clean up a page or something, and Murphy Anderson was working there, and he started talking. And I realized it wasn’t the radio, it was Murphy Anderson I was hearing. [Jim laughs] He sounded like a radio announcer. He has a great speaking voice. JA: Was your relationship with Carmine as much personal as it was business? CARDY: It was mainly business. We didn’t go out to dinner or anything like that. Carmine used to call me “Viscardi,” because he remembered that used to be my last name. I thought that was funny. We always got along well together. He always liked my work.

“[Mike Sekowsky] Was A Hell Of A Nice Guy” JA: You were friends with Mike Sekowsky. CARDY: He was a hell of a nice guy. I liked Mike and his wife Pat; we went to dinner almost once a week. We’d go to different restaurants and it cost me a fortune, [Jim chuckles] but they were happy with it.

What’s Cooking, Neal? By the time he started drawing comic books in the late 1960s—and influencing a new generation of artists and even writers—Neal Adams had already had his own newspaper comic strip (Ben Casey, 1962). And, as a topper, he was featured with this text piece, photo, and repro’d artwork in the 1966 Cartoonists’ Cookbook. (Sorry—we didn’t have room to print the recipe on the facing page!) [Art ©2007 Neal Adams.]

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

didn’t say a word, but he stared at you. JA: Did you ever get a sense of what the source of his unhappiness was? CARDY: No, I never probed into that. I think he was a slightly disturbed man. He was a great artist, but I think he had little problems, a little dark side to him that he was wrestling with, though I don’t know what was bothering him. Did I ever tell you the story of Mike Sekowsky and Murray Boltinoff? I delivered a job at the same time that Mike Sekowsky delivered a job to Murray Boltinoff. Sekowsky showed him the work, it was 24 pages, and Boltinoff said, “Oh, my God, Mike. What the hell did you do? This is lousy. This is awful.” Mike said, “I thought that you were late on the schedule.” Boltinoff said, “Oh, yeah, but you were late before. This stuff is awful.” Mike didn’t say anything. Murray Boltinoff gave him another script because Mike was really good—fast and good. I got a script, too.

Sekowsky On The Speedway Nick recounts how he and Mike & Pat Sekowsky often dined together back in the day. Before he became a DC mainstay in the 1950s and drew the first few dozen issues of Justice League of America, Sekowsky penciled for Timely/Marvel and numerous other companies. This piece of 1950s art above from Standard/Nedor, from an unspecified comic, was picked up for A/E from the Heritage Comics Archives by the eagle eye of Domonic Bongo. Sekowsky and his work were the focus of A/E #33; thanks to Pat Sekowsky for the photo at top left. Inker uncertain. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

A few days later, I was invited up to Mike’s house for dinner. And after dinner, I started to leave and saw some artwork on a bookcase near the door. I asked about it and Mike said, “Oh, that’s the job I picked up when we were there. You remember the job.” I said, “You’re all finished?” He said, “Yeah, 24 pages.” He had it done already. Then he said, “Well, I’m leaving it here and I’m holding it a while before I turn it in to Murray Boltinoff.” [mutual laughter] By coincidence, we delivered our jobs at the same time again. Mike showed Boltinoff the work and Murray looked at it. He said, “Now, isn’t that better? This is great, Mike. You see what you can do when you take your time?” It was the same amount of time he used on the others. [mutual laughter] When something was nice, Murray Boltinoff was appreciative, but not to the point where he would say, “This is great.” You know, they never said it was great.

Mike was a guy that, in a way, terrified people because of the impression he cast. And when he gave you that stare, you knew to stay away from him. There used to be a bar across the street from DC called Friar Tuck’s. I was ready to go home one night and Mike already

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

But to each his own, and if the editors didn’t gripe about it, then Vinnie didn’t give a crap. But he was a guy that you never knew what was going to happen. You knew he wanted something. There was always... he was very quiet, but you knew there was a very strong undercurrent going somewhere. You never knew. It was a beautiful-looking book, but you didn’t know what the hell was inside. [mutual laughter] JA: Getting back to Sekowsky: what were his pencils like? CARDY: Mike’s pencils were very accurate. You could follow them like a breeze. He was a very good artist. His work had a lot of clarity. He was a person that knew what he wanted to do and did it, right off the bat. With me, I’d doodle around until I got it right, until it fit. You could almost analyze somebody by the way they draw.

“[Julie Schwartz] Was Afraid You Might Ask For A Raise” JA: Do you remember Tommy Nicolosi? CARDY: I liked him. He was a jovial guy who colored for DC. So did Jerry Serpe, whose coloring I liked. Sometimes Jerry went into his wild experiments where he did some watercolors that were free and easy, so I figured, well, it’d be nice to try it on a cover. I said, “Jerry, I want to keep these in the browns and the light blues and I don’t want anything to—I just like the warmth and the cool, just the little spots of cool.” When I saw it, it had a big, deep purple logo on top. I said, “Where did that come from?” He said, “Well, they’d already used a blue logo.” JA: Did you get to know Gil Kane?

“Men In Long Underwear” Under editor Julius Schwartz, Cardy got to draw lots and lots of what he calls gents in long-johns—and a few ladies in their skivvies, to boot— especially when he drew covers for JLA-JSA team-up issues of Justice League of America. No wonder he forgot to end Starman’s sleeves at the wrist! Seen here is the cover of issue #101 (Sept. 1972). [©2007 DC Comics.]

CARDY: I used to see him every now and then; he was a nice guy, but I’ve heard him speak with other people. He could be very caustic. [laughs] One time, Gil came into the office and said that Joe Orlando had his head in the palms of his hands. He said, “Oh, my. This headache’s killing me.” You know, he had an awful time. Gil Kane looked at him and in his most sympathetic voice, he said, “You know, Joe, you should see a good proctologist.” Joe said, [weakly] “Oh, yeah. I think I’ll do that.” [mutual laughter] Another time, there was a guy at DC that used to walk around with very strong body odor, and Gil Kane said, “You know, if that guy ever took off his jacket, it’d stand up by itself.” [mutual laughter] JA: We haven’t said much about Dick Giordano.

had two or three drinks. I said, “Mike, you going home?” He kept staring, and his face was getting ruddy, and he said, “I’m waiting for this guy.” He was giving the bartender a hard time and I said, “Okay, Mike. I’ll see you,” and left. [mutual laughter]

CARDY: When Dick Giordano came in, he told me that he used to like my work on Daniel Boone, but he didn’t know who the artist was. He was tickled to death when he realized it was me. We got along fine; Dick was a very nice man.

A lot of guys used to go there and have a little cocktail before they went home. Vinnie Colletta always took women there. Every now and then, someone would yell out, “Vinnie Colletta, phone call! Otto Preminger is calling!” And Vinnie said, “Tell him I’ll busy and will call him back.” [mutual laughter] “And don’t bother me now.” [more laughter] And these girls used to fall all over this guy.

JA: Julie Schwartz.

Vinnie Colletta had a fabulous home in New Jersey; all brick, and it had a large swimming pool, and he invited some of the guys out there. And we didn’t know how he afforded this place, but we had a funny feeling that it was gotten by some shady means or something.

CARDY: Julie Schwartz worked in a different department. I saw more of Julie when I started doing his covers. But I got to know Julie more at the conventions than anything else. He was another one that never used to give you compliments on your work. Carmine went to him one time with a finished cover, and asked Julie if he liked it. Julie said, “You’re getting paid for it, aren’t you?” [mutual laughter] I think he was afraid you might ask for a raise or something. JA: Maybe so. When you did covers for Julie, how much involvement did he—

JA: There was a lot of talk about that he was in the Mafia or had ties.

CARDY: I didn’t do them for Julie. I did them with Carmine. Julie didn’t get very involved with that.

CARDY: Or something like that. But Vinnie was the type that, when he did backgrounds, a lot of guys griped about it. Neal Adams didn’t want him to touch his stuff because he used to erase the backgrounds.

JA: So, professionally, your dealings with Julie were very minimal. It seemed like your covers became more and more posterish as time went on. Did you feel that way?

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

Neither Gone Nor Forgotten When he got too busy to do full-art chores on Teen Titans, Cardy’s inking made the penciling of veterans Irv Novick (left) and Lee Elias (right) look virtually like his own! These splashes from issues #11 (Sept.-Oct. 1967) and #15 (May-June 1968) are two of more than 500 pages of the teenage heroes’ adventures—most of them drawn by Cardy—gathered in the black-&-white volume Showcase Presents: Teen Titans, Vol. 1. Scripting by Bob Haney. [©2007 DC Comics.]

CARDY: Other covers had so many things going on at the same time, and the editors at that time figured an artist is supposed to draw the whole thing. If there was a little white space anywhere, it made them uncomfortable. They either had to put a word balloon or a blurb in there. But Carmine gave me leeway to do the covers the way I wanted to. I tried to please Julie and Carmine, because Carmine gave you the cover ideas. He was the boss and I respected his ideas. I would pass a comic stand where they had all these covers competing with each other on these racks. And I figured, if a kid goes into a store, and he looks at these different comic books, he has about two seconds or three seconds as he looks for a book. I figured you have to hit that guy and catch him on his first look, and I tried to make my covers simple and to the point, and with enough color or contrast to catch his eye. If you want something that’s regal and very grandiose, you think of a cathedral or high-ceilinged things, you go on the vertical. You try to give that godlike feeling to it. If you want something in repose, you work on a horizontal line. And if you want action, you go on the diagonal line. When I did my covers, I tried to make them as simple and work within a silhouette, almost, of the whole thing as a unit by itself, and the color around it. And if there were other characters that I had to put in, I would minimize them with line and color. If the main character has a red costume, and the background character has a red costume, I tried to make the red costume of the subordinate one a little lighter to separate him from main figure.

“I Lost Interest In It” JA: Why do you think that Carmine picked you to do so many covers over other artists he could have picked? CARDY: Well, from what I gather, when I did Aquaman or Congo Bill or Daniel Boone or Teen Titans, he liked my work. And when I did Bat Lash, and Bat Lash fell, then I was doing some The Brave and the Bold stories, and he wanted to keep me busy. Carmine respected my work and didn’t want me sitting around, being idle. Otherwise, I’d have left. I stayed there for a while, but each cover is a full-page illustration. But then they start filling the page with all these heads on one side of the splash, [Jim laughs] and then sometimes they’d put two or three or four panels on a splash, which wouldn’t interest anyone. I lost interest in it, and that’s when I went into the other fields. JA: Also, you inked some other people, Gil Kane being one of them. CARDY: I was getting ready to do “Bat Lash” and was still drawing The Teen Titans. I said, “Well, I will continue to do The Titans, but I don’t have time to pencil it. If you get somebody to pencil the book, I’ll ink it in my style.” So Neal Adams, Gil Kane, Frank Springer, and George Tuska penciled some stories. I just did the inking. Now, if Neal Adams or Gil Kane or some of these fellows drew their women in a certain way, I would draw them in my way. Sometimes, I would correct them to conform to what the readers were used to.

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

JA: Did you like inking other people? CARDY: To me, it was just another job to do. When you create your own pencils and ink them, you have an enjoyment because you’ve seen what you created come to form. You see what I mean? You put so much into it, so you appreciate it more. The secret with this is, when you enjoy doing it, it makes it go so much easier. JA: In regard to The Brave and the Bold: was drawing Batman challenging? CARDY: No, I always liked drawing Batman, though it was a little different than other series. The stories were a little better-written and a lot different than what Bob Haney wrote for Teen Titans. I put a lot more effort into The Brave and the Bold, especially when I was having a grown-up woman like The Black Canary or some of the other characters. I tried to get more action into it and more blacks, because I was going from light comedy with The Teen Titans, into something heavier. When the story is dramatic and serious, like where they have an atomic bomb in their story, you want to make it as sinister as hell, and so you put a lot more blacks in it. But I enjoyed those. Those are some of the better jobs I did, because, when I think back, it could be that I was fading out of the business doing these little jobs, that I wanted to show that I could still do it. [mutual laughter] I don’t know, it just came out that way. But maybe, who knows? [more laughter] JA: Did you miss doing comics at any point after you quit DC? CARDY: Before I left, I made my contacts. I still did one or two jobs while I was home and in between jobs, I had approached Marvel because they had full-color covers on their [black-&-white] magazines. They published Crazy and kung-fu magazines. I wanted to experiment

with color. I tried casein, I tried watercolors... I tried everything to see how they reproduced because, with watercolors, sometimes, if you’re using a transparent watercolor, and then you put a little opaque in that, it looks all right in the original. But when it prints, that opaque looks like it’s a different color, almost. So I was experimenting with that. I painted covers for Marvel for quite a while. Then I went to an advertising agency and I did some layouts for Grease and a few other posters. Say there was a movie coming out, like Casey’s Shadow. I’d do a pencil sketch, or sometimes a little charcoal sketch, about 15" by 18". It had something to do with Walter Matthau and some horses, and a little kid on a racetrack or something; and I made two or three of those layouts in pencil and got $2000 for it. I got a lot more for finished painted covers, too. And I figured, “I should have been here a long time ago.” [laughs] JA: Looking back, what was your favorite time in comics? CARDY: I really enjoyed Bat Lash, because my style was no longer a hindrance. In other words, I finally got into the mold that everybody else did. No longer was I trying to perfect my figure drawing. I got to understand the human figure, but then I got to the point where I could do it more rapidly without nitpicking. I tried to do away with a lot of the crosshatching. I also enjoyed The Brave and the Bold.

“All You’re Drawing Is Men In Long Underwear”

The Cowboy And The Cutie In 1999 Cardy created this Bat Lash art for a print he’s sold at comics conventions. The original art, Bob Bailey tells us, is 15H" tall by 12H" wide, “done in various grades of pencils which really show off Nick’s shading, and that’s something we never saw in his pen and ink comics.” Bob says he purchased the original from N.C. at the 2000 Heroes Con in Charlotte, NC—where he also took this photo of Nick and his friend and one-time editorial director, Carmine Infantino, which you’ve already seen, a lot smaller, on p. 3! [Bat Lash TM & ©2007 DC Comics.]

Nick Cardy In The Golden & Silver Ages

NICK CARDY Checklist [This Checklist is adapted from information appearing on Jerry G. Bails’ online Who’s Who of American Comic Books 1928-1999. See below for information on how to access this invaluable website. Names of features which appeared both in comic books of that title and also in other comics are generally not italicized below. Reprinted material is only sporadically listed. Key: (a) full art; (p) = pencils only; (i) = inks only; (w) = writer; (d) daily newspaper strip; (S) Sunday newspaper strip.] Name: Nick Cardy (birthname: Nicholas Viscardi) (1920- )(artist; writer)

41; Don Granval (a) 1940; Flint Baker (a) 1941; Frosty North (a) 1941; Inspector Dayton (a) 1940; Jane Martin (a) 1940-42; Kaänga (a) 1941; Lost World (signed “Viscardi” in Planet Comics #22)(a) c. 1943; Oran of the Jungle (a) 1940; Roy Lance (a) 1940; Señorita Rio (a) 1942-43, 1947; Shark Brodie (a) 1940-41; Simba (a) 1943; Stuart Taylor (a) 1940

Education: High School of Industrial Arts, New York City; Art Students League, NYC Influences: Maxwell Starr Member: National Cartoonists Society Print Media (non-comics): Artist: 1959 Picture World Encyclopedia; advertising; magazine covers

I.W. Publications (reprint): Señorita Rio (a) 1958, 1963 Marvel Comics: covers (paint) 1974-76

Fine Arts: painter: exhibited in Paris; water colors, sculptures, portraits, & puppets

Quality Comics: Betty Bates (a) 1940-41; covers (a) 1948; crime (a) 1948, 1952-53; Don Glory (a) 1940-41; Jack and Jill (a) 1940-41; Lee Preston (a) 1940-41; Quicksilver (a) 194041; Sally O’Neil (a) 1940-41; Samar (a) 194041; Wonder Boy (a) 1940-41

Additional Biography: The Art of Nick Cardy (1999), et al. Honors: Inkpot Award (San Diego ComicCon) 1998

A Titan, But Definitely Not A Teen Syndication: Batman and Robin (d)(S)(p) A 1995 penciled self-portrait by the artist. c. 1971 for Ledger Syndicate; Casey Ruggles [©2007 Nick Cardy.] (d)(S)(ghost a) 1952-53 for United Feature Syndicate; Lady Luck (S)(w)(a) 1941-42 for romance (a) 1951-52 Register & Tribune Syndicate; Tarzan (d)(a) 1950 for United Feature Syndicate Comics Studio (Shop): Eisner & Iger Studio (p)(i) 1939; Iger Studio (p)(i) c. 1940-42; Will Eisner Studio (p)(i) 194-42, a.k.a. “Viscardi” COMIC BOOK CREDITS (Mainstream US Producers) Better Publications: Adventures into Darkness (a) 1952-53; crime (a) 1952-53; horror (a) 1954; Intimate Love (a) 1952; Joe Yank (a) 1953; Lost Worlds (a) 1952; New Romances (a) 1952-53; Today’s Romance (a) c. 1952; Who Is Next? (a) 1953 DC Comics: Alan Ladd (a) 1949-50; Aquaman (a) 1961-68; Aquaman and Aqualad (i) 1961; backup feature (a) 1965 in Aquaman and Challengers of the Unknown 1970; Bat Lash (plot, a) 1968-69; Batman (i) 1972, 1974; Batman and Bat-Squad (a) 1970; Batman and Black Canary (a) 1970; Batman and Flash (i) 1971; Batman and Sgt. Rock (i) 1971; Batman and Teen Titans (a) 1971; Batman and Wildcat (i) 1971; Blackhawk (a) 1959; Congo Bill (a) 1954-57; covers (a) 1949-76, 1981; Daniel Boone (a) 1955-57; Falling in Love (p) 1967; Gang Busters (a) 1948-51, 1954, 1957-58; Ghosts (i) 1972; Girls’ Love Stories (i) 196970; The Greatest 1950s Stories Ever Told (reprint, Congo Bill) 1990; Heart Throbs (a) 1971; House of Mystery (a) 1953-62; House of Secrets (a) 1957-61, 1973; Inside Secrets of the Law (a) 1948; Lilith (a) 1971-72; My Greatest Adventure (a) 1955-61; The Phantom Stranger (i) 1970; pin up (paint) 1997; Plop! (a) 1973-74; Police at Work (p) 1950; Rip Hunter, Time Master (a) 1961; Secret Hearts (i) 1970; Special Crime Feature (p) 1949; The Spectre (p) 1974; Strange Adventures (a) 1965; Tales of the Unexpected (a) 1956-61; Teen Titans (a) 1965-74, 1976, 1988-89; Tomahawk (a) 1954-57; The Unexpected (i) 1975; Untold Tales of Filmland (a) 1949-50; The Witching Hour (a) 1970; Young Love (i) 1970; Young Romance (p) 1971 Fiction House Comics: Blackout (a) 1942; Buzz Crandall (a) 1940s; Casmilla (a) 1942-43, 1945-49; Captain Wings (a) 1942; covers (a) 1940-

St. John Publishing: romance (a) 1948, 1955 Ziff-Davis Comics: Explorer Joe (a) 1951-52; Famous Stars (a) 1952;

The WHO’S WHO of American Comic Books (1928-1999) FREE – online searchable database – FREE http://www.bailsprojects.com No password required

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ALTER EGO:

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The Siegel & Shuster Deal At 30 One Of Fandom’s Pioneering Columnists On The Superman Settlement

A/E

by Murray Bishoff

EDITOR’S NOTE: Men Of Flesh—And Man Of Steel Alter Ego #56 featured a previouslyWriter Jerry Siegel looks over artist Joe Shuster’s shoulder in a photo from the Nov. 1941 issue of unpublished 1975 Cornet, then a popular digest-sized magazine… interview by Alan Light and Murray juxtaposed with a powerful montage of Superman Bishoff of Jerry Siegel and his family, heads drawn by artist supreme Curt Swan. Surely, conducted only a few months before the having lost all rights to their co-creation, Jerry historic agreement between DC Comics on and Joe must’ve felt all the emotions expressed the one hand, and Jerry Siegel and Joe over the years. Photo courtesy of Michael Feldman; Shuster on the other, which finally gave a art photocopy courtesy of Joe & Frank Giella. lifetime pension to the co-creators of [Art ©2007 DC Comics; photo ©2007 the respective Superman. Murray wrote this contextual copyright holders.] piece for A/E #56, but there was no room for it in that issue, so we’re pleased to present it at this time. Again, I must stress here, as I did in #56, that the National/DC regime which Siegel and Shuster sued in 1947 was not composed of the same people who were in charge in the mid-1970s. And Murray is certainly correct in his assumption that Carmine Infantino, publisher of National/DC at the time the controversy erupted anew, had no authority to make any settlement with the pair, and neither his nor any subsequent DC administration is to be considered as indicted in any way by this article. In addition, while convinced of the essential rightness of Siegel & Shuster's argument, and concurring that the settlement was a landmark instance of (belated) justice, we nonetheless recognize that there are other aspects of the case not dealt with in Murray's piece; and we stand committed to air those arguments, as well, if someone wishes to make them.

The Buyer’s Guide For Comics Fandom It hardly seems possible that 30 years have passed since the settlement between DC Comics and Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster. It’s just as unbelievable that only 40 years ago the United States turned the corner on racial prejudice when Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1965. These were pivotal moments in history, passing as we barely recognized them. Looking back, there was even more, for 1975 was the year comics fandom grew up. Think about it. In terms of creation, it was the year Otto Binder, James Blish, Vaughn Bodé, and Moe Howard died, the year of the fifth Overstreet Price Guide. You could still buy a decent Fantastic Four #1 for $125. Alan Light and I were at ground zero for fan activity, The Buyer’s Guide for Comics Fandom. In its fourth year, TBG became the door that opened fandom into a national force, a body that interacted in a language that anyone could understand––money—-and a body that generated ideas that had to be reckoned with on a national stage.

With issue #87 (cover date July 18, 1975, but dated two weeks after publication), TBG went weekly, up from a twice-a-month tabloid. The number of pages published in TBG were determined by what advertisers submitted, and they had found that Alan Light had indeed built a better mousetrap. Ads poured in at such a rate that issues got too big, and it only made sense to print them faster. The story is in the numbers: in the issues published in calendar year 1975 (#75, dated Feb. 1, 1975, to #113, dated Jan. 16, 1976), The Buyer’s Guide published 2,708 tabloid pages, compared to 1,532 in 1974 (issues #50-74). Nothing like that had ever occurred before in the history of comics fandom. The sheer volume of trade was at unprecedented levels, and those who were in the business of producing comic books began to think seriously about the fan market, now that they could see it, and touch it. Alan Light even negotiated a full-page ad in DC Comics for TBG, a heretofore unheard-of proposition for mere comics fans; and, by the end of the year, TBG had over 8,000 paid subscribers. Even in its heyday, the Rocket’s Blast-Comicollector, the fanzine that pioneered advertising to collectors, had never topped 3,000 subscribers.

The Sigel & Shuster Deal At 30

This was a whole new world. Comic conventions had begun proliferating in the mid-’70s, popping up all over the country. Now they didn’t have to rely on regional audiences. There was a way to attract fans and dealers from anywhere in the country. And 1975 was the biggest year anyone had yet seen. The fan press had been maturing for several years, the Youth Shines A “Light” standard of writing set early by Publisher Alan Light (left) and Alter Ego and others settling columnist Murray Bishoff proudly peruse down through the layers of the then-latest 1970s issue of The Buyer’s Guide for Comics Fandom, which would “gosh-wow” ruminations by metamorphose, after Light sold it, into kids into those who were trying today’s Comic Buyer’s Guide. Photo to make a statement. More and courtesy of Alan. Not all that much more, fan writers had a purpose, younger were the “Jerry and Joe” to explore, critique, and improve who saved the Earth from aliens in both the comics they loved and “If Superman Didn’t Exist…” in Action their ability to talk about them. I Comics #554 (April 1984)—by creating had pioneered convention Superman. This modern classic was reporting in TBG, reporting scripted by Marv Wolfman and illustrated by Gil Kane; thanks to panel discussions and market Bob Cherry for the scans. trends, bringing photos back. [Action art ©2007 DC Comics.] Others followed with details on their shows, especially photos. More and more, the faces of comics creators were appearing in print. The comics companies had released news for years to fanzines. Now it was getting out more consistently, as fanzines survived beyond a few issues. When TBG went from monthly to twice a month, then weekly, it was like an information earthquake, like the invention of the telephone. News that before could take two to eight weeks to circulate was now suddenly in front of the public nationally in a matter of days. Under Post Office standards, Alan had to fill 25% of TBG with nonad material to meet second-class qualifications. He was not only running columns by Don and Maggie Thompson, Marty Greim, Dave McDonnell, Don Rosa, myself as the in-house news column, and others, but also printing newspaper clippings about comics, cartoonists, and nostalgia from around the country. With its ads, columns, newspaper pieces, letters to the editor, and breaking news, TBG became a real newspaper for fandom. Rereading that year’s issues today tells strikingly what was going on nationwide, a remarkable record that really needs to be put on microfilm or DVD and made available again. On top of that, Alan bought a pile of Fawcett Comics story proofs at a convention and reprinted them, the first look a new generation had at many Golden Age stories. Adding new comics stories by Alan Hanley and other fan artists, he created a collectible in TBG, though we hardly recognized it at the time.

Breaking News In the midst of this earthquake of information and tsunami of fan activity came the stories we wrote about. There is legislation across the country called Sunshine Laws, meant to force disclosure of public meetings. The effect of such laws is that, when some things reach the light of day, the knowledge of them hits like a lightning bolt. Nothing is the same after that. Thus it was with the story of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The world may not have changed overnight, but once the fire was lit, nothing could stop it as it spread.

Someone whose identity will never be known mailed to TBG a photocopy of a legal journal’s documentation of the end of Siegel and Shuster’s long-running lawsuit against DC over the Superman copyright. I got that piece of paper. Here is what I wrote, the first that anybody knew of what had been going on with Siegel and Shuster, and the only published account of the story anywhere (from TBG #79, dated April 1, 1975, p. 25): “Another chapter in the sad story of how Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster got nothing for Superman has passed. For many years the two have co-renewed the copyrights to the Superman comic strip, having given up on the comic book rights as the sole property of National. National contested the Siegel-Shuster renewal, and all three went to court to have the case resolved once and for all. “After one hearing and an appeal, the decision came against Siegel and Shuster for another painful reason. In 1947 Siegel and Shuster had attempted to annul their contracts with National and had failed because in the beginning the team had signed contracts giving National “exclusive rights to the use of the (Superman) characters and story.” (I’m quoting from the Bureau of National Affairs Patent, Trademark and Copyright Journal #209.) This “exclusiveness” did not say anything about copyright renewals, but it generally applies. The New York State Supreme Court in 1947 refused to regard Superman as a product of “work for hire” because he had been created far in advance of his association with National. Under the “work for hire” law, all renewal rights immediately belong to the employer. The court finally ruled against the creators “only on the ground that the 1947 state court action, in interpreting the agreements between the parties, precludes the plaintiffs from contesting ever again that all rights in Superman,

The Superman Settlement

including the renewal copyright, have passed forever to the defendants (National). “So the two men that made the super-hero an American reality end up with nothing. Fandom has done very little to ease this wound, and we really can’t let this go. We can’t change the law, but we can make these men heroes in their own right. Remember, a great man makes himself; people make heroes. Shel Dorf—Jerry Siegel lives out in California; get him to some of your conventions. Let’s find Joe Shuster and give him the honor he deserves. Fandom has stood still on this issue long enough.”

The Fandom Strikes Back Fandom did not take this news lying down. There had never been a story like this, no cause to get behind other than keeping series alive and championing the greatness of various artists. Shel Dorf immediately went to Jerry Siegel, and the San Diego Convention Committee signed him up to come to the biggest West Coast convention in August. This news was mentioned at the end of my column in TBG #83 (June 1, 1975, p. 43). A photo of Shel with Jerry ran in TBG #86 (July 15, 1975, p. 48). As yet, there was no course of action to take, beyond my suggestion to let Jerry and Joe know how we felt about them. Alan and I headed off to the San Diego Convention with great anticipation. It was a summer of significant activity for us, as Alan was getting a feel for the depth of this burgeoning fan market. I had already been to Houstoncon, and we’d been to Phil Seuling’s glorious July New York City convention, for years the annual gathering of fans after which all other conventions modeled themselves and ultimately paled in comparison. Alan decided he would take his reel-to-reel recorder to San Diego, tape the panels, and produce an LP vinyl record from the proceedings, again something that had never been done before. Key to that trip was interviewing Jerry Siegel, the interview that appeared in Alter Ego #56. I can’t describe my excitement in meeting the Siegels on the convention floor, when they found us at our dealer’s table. I was used to flamboyant characters like Gil Kane and Jim Steranko, and I’d seen men of absolute confidence and ego, like Burne Hogarth and Will Eisner, certain of their place in history and worthy of any adulation fans could extend. But Jerry Siegel was not like them. Carefully dressed in a modest business suit, this creative giant was very reserved and soft-spoken, shy, almost embarrassed that anyone would pay attention to him. He was about 5'6", and did not stick out in a crowd. He said he’d come mostly to see me, for what I had written. I sensed this was a private man with much to share, but not in front of a crowd, and indeed he was not scheduled to speak at the convention, though he appeared on stage numerous times. I felt a responsibility, standing in for all fans, to make a connection with him when we had time to talk.

I found Jerry Siegel to be a deeply injured man emotionally; not bitter, for bitterness poisons one’s viewpoint about everything. He was bitterly disappointed, let down by those he had trusted. He’d carried this hurt for over 20 years, from the time he hadn’t been able to bring himself to speak to George Reeves on a New York sidewalk, leaving the industry, then later swallowing his pride to return to work for the very people he felt had abused him. Though his voice didn’t get very loud, he was articulate, unwavering in his narrative, stopping occasionally as he’d get tears in his eyes, recalling how he’d been treated. We never got much insight into his creative process. It seemed the characters and adventures he wrote simply flowed effortlessly out of him. We also found his wife Joanne and daughter Laura to be utterly charming. Joanne was the strong one, the rock that obviously kept Jerry steady, and much more talkative. When we did our interview, there were times when she would begin speaking to me while Jerry was answering Alan, and I’ve often worried if the overlapping voices hadn’t caused us to lose a chunk of the story.

Beating The Drums For Siegel And Shuster The convention ended with the annual banquet, at which time the Inkpot Awards were given out. Jerry received one that year, and as the crowd cheered, he posed for the group photo with Will Eisner, Jack Kirby, Gil Kane, Stan Lee, Jim Steranko, Bob Clampett, Daws Butler, and June Foray. I was so happy for him, for this was what I had hoped would happen. Yet he was so quiet. He later told me the moment was so emotional for him that he simply could not speak. When we got back to the office, here’s what I wrote (for TBG #95, Aug. 22, 1965, p. 32): “I had the delightful opportunity to meet Jerry Siegel, the creator of Superman. Thanks to Shel Dorf and something I wrote in this space a few months back, Mr. Siegel chose to attend the con, and he was presented with the convention’s Inkpot Award and ACBA’s Shazam Award in recognition of his and Joe Shuster’s fine work. We had a chance to speak to Mr. Siegel, his wife, and their daughter Laura, who incidentally played Mary Anne in the CBS television series Sons and Daughters, in private, and we discussed the long years of hardship the family has suffered because of the ownership battle for Superman and the end result.

The Man Of Tomorrow—And The Day After By the early 1940s, Superman was already a merchandising phenomenon—and he has been ever since. This amalgamation of goodies appeared in a photo in Sotheby’s art auction catalog for June 18, 1994. [Superman TM & ©2007 DC Comics.]

“Mr. Siegel has written so much for comics, in the early years and even in the sixties, when he wrote a large percentage of the Superman family stories. He knows comics well, yet today he is no longer part of the industry. He blames the gradual dehumanization of the Man of Tomorrow on company pressures begun in the forties, and feels Superman must return to the early ‘realistic’ format to avoid total stagnation. He has always considered Captain Marvel a direct copy of his creation, and he feels fans who revel in the Big Red Cheese’s superior humor don’t know his Superman well enough. That makes me wonder,

The Sigel & Shuster Deal At 30

if fans gave the Siegel and Shuster Superman (1938-1947) the same nostalgic acclaim they give Captain Marvel, how different things might be today. “Mr. Siegel spoke very fondly of his partner Joe Shuster, who currently lives in New York state in poor health. Mrs. Siegel revealed she tried to raise a little extra money by doing some modeling work back in the thirties, so one day she answered a newspaper advertisement and met a young Joe Shuster, thus becoming his model for Lois Lane. And, of course, that’s how she Super-Stripper met Jerry Siegel. Both Alter Ego #56 printed photos of Siegel and Shuster in the mid-1970s… so we’re using this opportunity to print two examples of Mr. Siegel and Mr. Superman in newspaper comic strips—the medium wherein he received perhaps his widest exposure to an audience (although, of Shuster have remained course, not everyone who bought a newspaper read a particular strip in it). secluded all these years (Top:) A Wayne Boring-penciled Superman daily from April 30, 1945—at a time when Siegel was writing the strip and Shuster was because of the overseeing the art. But what’s that “1971” date on the umpire’s chest protector at left? Repro’d from a photocopy of the original continuing legal battle art, courtesy of George Hagenauer. for the ownership of (Below:) Later, Superman was one of the stars of the World’s Greatest Super-Heroes newspaper strip, as per this daily from Feb. Superman with 27, 1981, by Paul Levitz (writer), George Tuska (penciler), & Vince Colletta (inker). By this time, Jerry and Joe were receiving a National, and it took pension for their creation, and were again appearing at occasional comics conventions. Repro’d from a photocopy of the original little effort to see the art, courtesy of Eddy Zeno. [Both dailies ©2007 DC Comics.] lack of good will involved. The battle has Jerry concluded with these words: left deep personal scars on Jerry Siegel and the members of his family, which ought to include Joe Shuster, for all they’ve gone through “As far as Joe and I are concerned, we have been victimized by evil together. men and a selfish, evil company which callously ruined us and appears to be willing to abandon us in our old age, though our creation “You might ask, ‘Well, 28 years ago these men lost the court case, Superman has made and continues to make millions for them. why don’t they forget about it and go on living?’ To that I have only Newspaper articles state National was paid $3,000,000 for the rights to one reply, and that’s what David Smith, head of Walt Disney make the Superman movie and that $15,000,000 will be spent to Productions’ archives, told us when we visited his office. ‘Really,’ he produce the movie––and the originators of Superman, Jerry Siegel and said, ’Everything we have here is based, in some way, on Mickey Joe Shuster, are not to receive one cent. Mouse.’ What a difference Superman has made, and could have made in some people’s lives. I gave Jerry Siegel a big hug and told him that was “What an infernal, sickening super-stench emanates from National from all of us. I hope Mr. Siegel now knows fandom does not forget.” Periodical Publications, Inc. We hope the public will never forget this when seeing the Superman character, or National Periodical comic Up, Up, And Away With Jerry Siegel books. Do not patronize Superman because of this injustice.” It was from this experience at the San Diego Convention that Jerry Siegel got the strength to get back in the fight. For the first time he had felt the support he always should have known from fans. A little over two months later, he went to the national press with his story. He released a 5,000-word diatribe outlining everything that had happened to them. Entitled “The Victimization of Superman’s Originators, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, by: Jack Liebowitz, Warner Communications; National Periodical Publications Inc.; Independent News Company (Distributor of Superman comic books),” the release was published in its totality in my column for TBG #105 (Nov. 21, pp. 34-35). Quoting letters back to 1938, this document was a raw primal scream. There was nothing diplomatic in it, nothing of a lawyer’s polish, leaving no moral ground for the opponent to take, no room for retreat or saving face.

The Press Of Public Opinion For fandom, suddenly there was a real cause to get behind. But, more importantly, the national press went wild with the story. Fortunately for Jerry and Joe, professionals in the industry lined up behind them. Neal Adams personally intervened and became their spokesman, appearing at their side at the pivotal New York City news conference on Dec. 9, 1975 (reported in Dave McDonnell’s “Media Report” in TBG #113, p. 35). The National Cartoonists Society, backing their president Jerry Robinson, took a stand with Siegel and Shuster, along with the Cartoonists’ Guild and the Academy of Comic Book Arts. Cartoonists willing to put their name on their cause

The Superman Settlement

The first credible word came back from Jay Emmett, executive vice president of Warner Communications, saying, “We have had a lot of discussions about this matter in the past few days. We are not indifferent to their plight, and we intend to do something about it. Legally, nothing has to be done. Morally, I think something should be done, and we will do it out of compassion. We plan to make an offer of a pension with the next month.” (Printed in TBG #107, Don and Maggie Thompson’s “Beautiful Balloons” column, p. 34.) This defense led to one of the most surreal TV moments, when Stan Lee, then-DC publisher Carmine Infantino, and “Superman” editor Julius Schwartz appeared on Tom Snyder’s Tomorrow Show on Nov. 19, Supermen Of The Silver Screen 1975. Unlike Stan, a mediaIn 1948 the first of two Columbia Superman serials (starring Kirk Alyn) had proved a big hit, and had led to the 1951 savvy hype master, Infantino Lippert Pictures production Superman and the Mole Men, starring George Reeves, as a big-screen test for a potential TV and Schwartz had little TV series. But in late 1975 it was the projected big-budget Superman film (which would eventually star Christopher Reeve) experience. When the Siegel that helped Siegel and others ratchet up the pressure for DC Comics’ parent company Warner to come to a settlement with and Shuster matter came up, Jerry and Joe. [Superman TM & ©2007 DC Comics.] as reported in my column (TBG #109, Dec. 19, 1975, p. included Milton Caniff, Jules Feiffer, Al Capp, Charles Schulz, Irwin 31, 33-34), Infantino said that “Superman” only got in Action Comics Hasen, and Burne Hogarth. #1 because there was a hole to fill. Schwartz had quite a bit to say, The Washington Star ran “Help! Desperate and Losing Bulldog interesting things about the comics business, but ultimately, in my Determination (Is Superman to the RESCUE of his impoverished opinion, when it came to Siegel and Shuster, he and Infantino came off creators?)” on Oct. 29, 1975 (reprinted in Don and Maggie Thompson’s on TV (whatever their personal feelings may have been) as at best “Beautiful Balloons” column, TBG #107, Dec. 5, 1975, p. 34). Their unsympathetic—a stance the public would not tolerate from what it piece focused on Joe Shuster, including a photo of him holding a perceived a faceless corporate giant beating up the epitome of the magnifying glass in order to see. Chicago Sun-Times columnist Bob worthy “little man” in America. Greene reported on the story in his column “Superman Tale––An Jerry Siegel stayed on the attack, even getting shrill in his rhetoric. American Comic Tragedy” on Nov. 9, 1975 (reprinted in TBG #109, He revealed that the silence he and Joe had maintained all those years Dec. 19, 1975, p. 31). There was an interview nationally distributed by about the case was undertaken at the direction of their attorneys. He the Associated Press. sent the following declaration to TBG (printed in #109, p. 32): Then there was the TV coverage. Siegel and Shuster appeared together on Tom Snyder’s Tomorrow Show on Dec. 1, 1975 (a “The publishers of Superman comic books, National Periodical transcript running in the “Beautiful Balloons” column, TBG #115, Jan. Publications Inc., killed my days, murdered my nights, choked my 30, 1976, pp 30-31), plus appearances on Howard Cosell’s Saturday happiness, strangled my career. I consider National’s executives Night show, with Gene Shalit on Today, interviews on all three economical murderers, money-mad monsters. If they, and the execunetworks in the Los Angeles area and via Metromedia in New York tives of Warner Communications which owns National, had City. consciences, they would right the wrongs they inflicted on Joe Shuster and me. A curse on the Superman movie!” By this point, what the fan press said was incidental. Letters to the editor came pouring in to TBG, expressing outrage in reading Jerry’s release. Some were less sympathetic, like TBG columnist Marty Greim, ’Twas The Night Before Christmas… who looked at the math of how Siegel and Shuster were paid (TBG #113, p. 36). Still, the general sentiment was that an enormous injustice The pressure to end a national embarrassment for Time/Warner and had been done, legal or not. save their heavy investment in the Superman movie was enormous, and showed no sign of letting up. The day before Christmas 1975, a The corporate response from Time/Warner, owners of DC, just as settlement was announced. I remember calling Jerry to congratulate they were gearing up to cast the first Superman movie, was cautious him. He was still soft-spoken, but this time he was happy. We printed and not nearly a match for the ferocious assaults being made on them.

The Sigel & Shuster Deal At 30

details the following week in my column (TBG #113, Jan. 16, 1976, p. 34). The settlement was $35,000, an annual “pension” of $20,000 a year, plus medical benefits for themselves and immediate family members, including Mrs. Siegel and Joe Shuster’s brother, Frank, who had been supporting Joe. In addition, the byline “Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster” would appear thereafter in the comics next to the Superman logo. The first offer which came to light had been for a $15,000 a year settlement, and no medical benefits or credits, which had been refused. I had been agitating for action in my column for months, and offered the following comment: “This happy ending did not come without enormous pressure. Remember, according to the letter of the law, National owed the creators of Superman nothing and had upheld that contention in court. Yet the recent publicity from newspapers, television, and radio across the country put Warner Communications in a bad spot, and when the story appeared on the second front page of the New York Times in Mary Breston’s column one day, all hopes of Warner ignoring the situation had passed. The case was taken out of the hands of Mr. Infantino and associates... by Warner, and Mr. Jay Emmett, vice president of the This is one of nine pieces of original art done for greeting cards—with the hero, at least, corporation, took charge of the negotiations. To him go apparently by noted DC cover artist Fred Ray—which turned up recently. They were our humble thanks. We must also salute Neal Adams and apparently done between 1940 and 1944. Thanks to Linda Monaco, the others will appear cartoonist-author Jerry Robinson for their efforts in in a near-future issue of A/E. Even the greeting cards printed from this art sell for $50 and up on eBay these days. [Superman TM & ©2007 DC Comics.] negotiating for Mr. Siegel and Mr. Shuster. This does not open the door for a mass descent on the companies by to play out on a great national stage, bringing in an amazing cast of other cartoonists for reparation. Bob Kane, who possibly would have characters, concluding with an ending straight out of a comic book. reason to complain, received according to Mr. Emmett ‘an enormous amount of money’ for the rights to Batman. At least this action does At the time I had just finished my third year of writing my TBG end the suffering for two wonderful people who have meant so much column. I would stop after seven full years, seeing symmetry in the to all of us. Mr. Shuster will shortly move to California and probably number and a need to move on. Yet at that moment, I made a declainto the San Diego area, so he’ll not be far from the Siegels’ home in ration about writing for fandom in its new maturity that stood as my Los Angeles. I can’t think of a better way to end 1975.” credo for the rest of my tenure, and makes as good a challenge today for those carrying on in the fan press (from TBG #113, P. 34):

Aftermath And Afterword Dealing with some people, it’s better to be unseen and unknown. Had the then-current DC administration been able to bring the Siegel and Shuster matter to a satisfactory conclusion, perhaps Jay Emmett wouldn’t have gotten involved, though, as a legal matter, it was probably out of the DC publisher’s hands. In any case, on Jan. 19, 1976, (as reported in my column, TBG #117, Feb. 13 1976, p. 27), Carmine Infantino made the error of firing the head of Edugraphics, an education-oriented corporate subdivision. Its head was a relative of Warner Communications chairman of the board William Sarnoff, who personally fired Infantino that morning. Whether or not that was sheer coincidence, I leave for the reader to decide. [A/E EDITOR’S NOTE: Infantino, however, insists that he did not fire the person in question.] There were other ramifications. DC writer Elliott Maggin wrote a scathing piece on the Siegel and Shuster affair for The Village Voice in New York City, published Jan. 14, 1976. Maggin was called on the carpet by Julie Schwartz and, after a heated exchange, was fired (reported in the same column). Siegel and Shuster signed to make their first East Coast appearance before fans at Phil Seuling’s Super DC Con 76 in NYC, Feb. 27-29. It had been an incredible year. Not only had fandom grown as an economic force, but an idea had grown from a few words in a fanzine

“I have no intentions of being just a reporter. I am here to make you think. I will get up on my soapbox and shove morality at my readers at every possible opportunity because, here in The Buyer’s Guide, it’s appropriate. We are not passive onlookers to the world of comics; we are involved. We deal with heroes, what it means to be heroic, what makes good literature, and what makes good art. We must think about what we love or we don’t really have a grasp on why we have a fandom at all.” [Murray Bishoff, who currently lives in Pierce City, Missouri, worked with Alan Light at DynaPubs from 1970 to 1982 in many capacities, including journalist, consultant, and production assistant. He worked for Jim Steranko at Supergraphics from 1982 to 1986. Today he is managing editor at The Monett Times daily newspaper in Monett, Missouri, where he has lived since 1988. He has had major stories and editorials picked up by the Associated Press, and is a past president of the Ozark Press Association. For the past three years, his reports on the Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival in Sedalia, Missouri, the largest ragtime festive anywhere, have been printed in The Mississippi Rag, published in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Murray's historical novel Cries of Thunder, based on the 1901 racial lynching that prompted Mark Twain to write The United States of Lyncherdom, will be published this spring by the Lawrence County (Missouri) Historical Society.]

The Best “Will” In The World

Part VII

Found! One More Entire Page From That Long-Lost 1940s “JSA” Story!

by Roy Thomas

ould you believe it? Yet another full page has been found of the never-published mid-1940s “Justice Society of America” story “The Will of William Wilson”!

As can be seen on the facing page, it’s page 2 of the “Green Lantern” chapter—the first art from this segment that’s turned up since August 2000, when pro writer Len Wein sent me a photocopy of three of its Paul Reinman-drawn, Gardner Foxscripted panels. This new discovery brings to a total of eight the number of tiers (rows) of panels from the “GL” chapter now accounted for. The other five were printed in The AllStar Companion, Vol. 1—but I’d like to think anyone reading this piece already knows that. (If not, see the TwoMorrows ad bloc in this issue.) Collectors David Studham and Dominic Bongo informed me in late 2006 of the sale of this original art on eBay, and they e-mailed scans of it just as The All-Star Companion, Vol. 2, was going to press, featuring an additional 7 pages’ worth of art from “Will” that had come to light since 2000. But I elected not to shoehorn the “new” page into that 240page tome. A few days later, after I forwarded a scan to him, A/E founder Jerry G. Bails “cleaned up” a version of the image somewhat, only a few weeks before his untimely passing this past November 23. Fortunately, the “GL” page was purchased by Dan Makara, long a benefactor of A/E, and he sent us a pristine scan just in time for this issue. You’re a champ in our book, Dan!

Like most (but not all) of the known extant art of “Will,” this “GL” page was sliced into horizontal thirds at some past date—probably by Marv Wolfman, when he was an editorial intern at DC in the late 1960s and did so as the only way he could preserve Golden Age art he’d otherwise been ordered to cut up for stuffing into the company incinerator. At some point in time, someone taped the three pieces back together. Most likely, it was a member of TISOS (The Illegitimate Sons of Superman), the fan-group amongst whom Marv, the future writer of classic runs on Marvel’s Tomb of Dracula and DC’s New Teen Titans, et al., distributed the hundreds of tiers of art and story that DC had “written off” for tax purposes on Sept. 30, 1949, and which Marv had rescued from the flames. (See All-Star Companion, Vol. 1, or the TwoMorrows trade paperback The Alter Ego Collection, Vol. 1, for details.) This “page 2” art comes before any of the previously-located tiers of the “Green Lantern” segment. It shows the hero being warned by an expert about the perils of diving to an ocean depth of 23,000 feet. He then flies off to his destination, the Nares Deep (which

Not All Mysteries Lie Asleep In The Deep The above notice that the All-American line of comics will henceforth be “published and identified” as a separate imprint is reproduced from the Dec. 1944 issue (Vol. 1, #8) of Independent News, the house organ of the company of that name. Independent News distributed National/DC’s comics, the related AA group, and other magazines—and was wholly owned by National. The black-&-white house ad printed with the notice included the cross-company title All-Star Comics #23, the last issue to sport a Superman-DC Publications symbol before the change. It’s tempting to wonder if this announcement doesn’t point the way toward the answer to a question that’s long vexed many DC fans: whether, at the turn of 1945, AA co-founder M.C. Gaines really broke away entirely from DC proper, half a year or so before he sold his share of the company to his co-owners, DC publishers Harry Donenfeld and Jack Liebowitz—or whether the apparent split between the two comics lines was more apparent than real, perhaps conceived for some purely business reason, such as hanging on to a precious wartime newsprint allocation by claiming that DC and AA were indeed two companies rather than one. (Which, for the most part, they were, since Gaines never owned any part of DC proper.) Gaines’ son William, later the publisher of EC Comics, claimed that by the mid-’40s his father quarreled constantly with his two partners and eventually insisted that they buy him out. In this formal late-1944 announcement, however, Liebowitz is listed as co-publisher of the “new” All-American group of comics… making it clear that Gaines was not splitting from both his partners at that time. This makes it likely that at this stage Donenfeld, too, was still a co-owner of AA as well as of DC… but that, perhaps for some technical or legal reason, he preferred to remain officially unconnected with it. (Note that there is no company symbol —either the standard DC one, or the new AA one which would soon be used—on any of the issues pictured; when published, some of these covers would sport DC logos, others that of AA.) At any rate, sometime in mid-1945, after approximately eight months of the official newsstand existence of “All-American Publications,” M.C. Gaines sold his part of AA outright to Donenfeld and Liebowitz, and the company was subsumed into National/DC. At that time, the regular DC sigil was restored to Mutt & Jeff, Funny Stuff, and all comics featuring Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and The Flash. With thanks to Jack Adams & Michael Feldman. [©2007 DC Comics.]

The Best “Will” In The World

is not mentioned in any other panels we have), and encounters four would-be assassins. Since we have access to the entire “JSA” introductory chapter of “Will,” it’s clear that, on his solo episode’s splash page, GL must have been told precisely where a 16th-century vessel called the Castile had once sunk, bearing to a watery grave a goblet carved by the famed sculptor and metalsmith Benvenuto Cellini. The Nares Deep, discovered by a Captain Nares aboard the good ship HMS Challenger in 1872, was for some time the deepest known part of the Atlantic Ocean. Located more or less between Haiti and Puerto Rico, it marks the top corner of the so-called “Bermuda Triangle” of popular legend. One account reports that there is a sunken World War II Japanese submarine somewhere in that area, located at a

depth of 5H kilometers, which researchers are still trying to salvage— but there was no mention of any Spanish galleons. Incidentally, one reason that writer (and history buff) Gardner Fox may have turned retrieving a goblet made by the Italian metalsmith into one of the six “impossible feats” the JSA males had to accomplish is that, in 1934—roughly a decade before this story was scripted—there had been a Hollywood movie titled Affairs of Cellini about the man whom film critic Leonard Maltin calls a “roguish Renaissance artist” and his romance with a duchess. This “lavish production,” directed by Gregory La Cava, starred Fredric March, Constance Bennett, Frank Morgan, and Fay Wray—with starlet Lucille Ball as a lady-in-waiting.

Paul Reinman. With thanks to Frank Motler.

Interestingly, Green Lantern’s outstretched right hand in panel 4 gives a touch of added credence to Dennis Mallonee’s theory (see ASCV2) that this chapter was originally written and even drawn featuring Starman rather than GL. It’s easy to envision that hand grasping Starman’s Gravity Rod. On the other hand (pun intended), it’s hard to see how GL’s left mitt as drawn in panel 6, with the Power Ring deflecting the hoodlums’ gunfire, could’ve been holding the Gravity Rod without forcing a redrawing of the bullets’ trajectories, etc. Any opinions out there? Added to the 20 O pages of art from “The Will of William Wilson”

which were printed in the first two volumes of The All-Star Companion, this new discovery brings to 21 O the number of pages of that discarded 48-page story which are known to exist. If we discount the probably 13 pages of the “Hawkman” and “Johnny Thunder” chapters (no panels of which have been recovered, and which may or may not have ever been drawn), that leaves only 13 N pages’ worth of art left to locate! Hopefully, one day there’ll be a last “Will” and testament… and we’ll definitely be here for a reading of that “Will”!

Hollywood Comes To Hollywood Superman Stars Shine With Comic Book Artists At Florida SuperCon by Allen Bellman

DITOR’S NOTE: Allen Bellman was an artist for Timely/Marvel (mostly), as well as for Lev Gleason and Charlton, from 1943 through the mid-1950s, as detailed in the in-depth interview conducted by Dr. Michael J. Vassallo in Alter Ego #32. We’ve asked Allen to share his various memories and doings with us from time to time—and this, we’re happy to say, is one of those times. There’ll be others.

It all began when I received a phone call from a woman who was a freelance writer, wanting to interview me about my comic book background. We arranged a time and date. She arrived a little late, bringing with her a young man in his twenties. It didn’t take long for me to realized this gentleman was a comic book fan who had just wanted to meet a live comic book artist from the past. Being the nice guy that I am, I went along with this, even autographing his Marvel comic books and honoring his request to pose with me for a photograph. It turns out he gives such autographed books away at various conventions and comics stores.

Bell(man), Dick, & Candle Allen Bellman standing next to artist (and former DC Comics managing editor and Charlton editor) Dick Giordano at the SuperCon, held in Hollywood, Florida, on November 3-5, 2006. Below are some of the recent pencil sketches of a blazing Human Torch, Cap, and Namor that Allen took to the SuperCon, which were printed as a montage in connection with a newspaper article. Photo by Roz Bellman. [Human Torch, SubMariner, & Captain America TM & ©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Because of this young couple, I was invited to participate in a forthcoming SuperCon to be held here in Hollywood, Florida, as this young man knew Mike Broder, the promoter of the upcoming event. This was followed by a call from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, a Chicago Tribune publication asking me for an interview. What followed prior to the SuperCon was a great story in the Sunday edition of the TV and entertainment section. They reproduced some of my Timely pages on the cover, along with a heavy-font “BELLMAN RETURNS!!” (with apologies to Michael Uslan of Batman Returns fame). They referred to me as a legend. Stan Lee, would you kindly move over, just a little. My wife and I arranged to stay at the Hollywood Beach Resort for the three days, as this was where the convention was to be held. I had a large table in the company of some comic book greats, which included Dick Giordano, Pablo Marcos, Bob Layton, Alex Saviuk, Ted McKeever—and let’s not forget Allen Bellman. Of course, there was also Margot Kidder, who portrayed Lois Lane with the late

The Bellman Always Rings Twice “Bellman Returns!!” So shrieks the cover of the magazine section of the Oct. 29, 2006, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, which spotlighted some of the work Allen did in the 1950s for Timely/Marvel. Hmm… if Ye Editor remembers correctly, jazzman Chick Corea, mentioned at the bottom of the cover, also has a Marvel connection. Didn’t he take part in the January 1972 Evening with Stan Lee at Carnegie Hall? [Art ©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Hollywood Comes To Hollywood

If It’d Been A Green Lantern Movie, They Could’ve Called Him Jack O’Lantern Jack O’Halloran as a super-villain from the Phantom Zone in the 1980 movie Superman II—and at the 2006 SuperCon, as snapped by Allen Bellman. [Movie still ©2007 Time-Warner.]

Christopher Reeve. And who can forget Noel Neill, who had played Lois in the longrunning television series? Then there was Jack O’Halloran, who co-starred in Superman I & II, along with Kidder and Reeve. O’Halloran’s screen credits include Farewell, My Lovely with Robert Mitchum, the 1977 version of King Kong, Dragnet in 1987, The Flintstones, and a host of other films.

Generations Allen with his twin granddaughters Jeaneen (left) and Doreen (right). Both are well-known artists in Kentucky. Photo by Roz Bellman.

Hollywood, Florida, has a boardwalk with restaurants and gift shops which we took advantage of while they were setting up in a large hall of the hotel on Friday. The next day was Showtime, and it didn’t take long for the people to start arriving. I had brought many pencil sketches of Marvel characters, and did not have a problem selling them. I found that there was no need to ink or color my work. Gene Colan is very successful in selling his tight pencil sketches at many of the convention he attends. The article on my past with Timely/Marvel and the names of comic book and movie star greats, along with a former wrestler known as The Iron Sheik, brought many people to the Con, hoping to meet those they knew from movies and comics.

My twin granddaughters, artists in their own right, made the trip to Florida from Louisville, Kentucky, to be with Roz and me. They have drawn two Kentucky Derby posters and PGA posters, and both have donated their work, which has brought many dollars to their favorite charities. Marv Hamlisch, Barbra Streisand’s musical arranger [also the co-writer of the song “The Way We Were,” the music for A Chorus Line, et al.], purchased one of Jeaneen’s paintings when it was on exhibit in The Hamptons in New York. Jeaneen suspects that it was a wedding gift for Barbra Streisand, who was to be married at the time. Jeaneen’s images hang in well-known art galleries in Florida, New York, Carmel (California), and elsewhere, while Doreen’s commercial accounts keep her busy as she works from her studio in Louisville. At one time in their lives, they wanted to be comic book artists, and because of their styles I know they could do it. Getting back to the Con: I approached Margot Kidder, with writing this article in mind, and asked her if she would pose with me. At first she balked, asking me to buy her autographed photo for $20. I looked her straight in the eye and stated that professional courtesy was in order here. I then explained why I wanted the photograph. That did it. Sitting next to her was Noel Neill, Lois Lane in the TV series starring George Reeves in the 1950s. (Strange that both important Superman actors had virtually the same last name, and both met tragic deaths in the prime of their lives.) Neill gladly posed for a picture with me. It had never dawned on me in my early years that I would have the pleasure of meeting these two fine ladies at the same time.

…And More Generations! (Left:) The ever-gracious Noel Neill poses for Allen’s camera at the SuperCon. Noel, of course, was the very first actress to play Lois Lane in a visual medium (following Joan Alexander on the Superman radio show), portraying the reporter in the Columbia movie serials Superman and Atom Man vs. Superman opposite Kirk Alyn as the Man of Steel, before George Reeves inherited the role. Phyllis Coates became the first TV Lois, but by the second season Noel was playing Lois again—and hers remains the image most people think of when they recall the TV series. When Ye Editor was located near her at a one-day convention in South Carolina a couple of years back, he was amazed that the indefatigable Ms. Neill stood the whole time, signing autographs and being perhaps the friendliest face most of the fans had ever seen! (Right:) Margot Kidder, the memorable Lois of the Christopher Reeve Superman films, poses with Allen, who’s drawn a super-hero or two of his own in his day. Hey, Allen—why didn’t you take a photo of the two great Lois Lanes together? Did anybody? Photo by Roz Bellman.

Superman Stars Shine With Comic Book Artists At Florida SuperCon

It was a great and cheerful SuperCon, meeting new fans and being in the company of great talents of the comic book industry. It was a pleasure to speak to Mike Broder, who was behind this venture. He is a young man, perhaps in his thirties if not younger. Yet he spoke as a seasoned businessman, and told me he had previously been in the film business. It was a pleasant experience, and it afforded my wife and me a chance to spend a weekend at the beach without the benefit of getting wet. LATE NOTE: At a recent social function, I was asked by a gentleman if I had known Jack Kirby. I replied that I never had the pleasure of meeting him, and that I joined the staff of Timely long after he had left, along with Joe Simon, to join DC Comics. It seems that this gentleman had met Kirby during the Second World War, while they were in France as GIs. Kirby drew pictures on the backs of the jackets of his fellow soldiers. When the higher-ups got wind of this, they ordered that all the drawings be removed, as they felt the pictures would make easy targets of the soldiers for snipers. But, boy, if any of them had survived—what collector’s items they would be!

You'll Believe A Kid Can Fly... (Above left:) Of this closing photo he took, Allen writes: “I told little Luis of Margate, Florida, to hold this pose or I would spike his Cheerios with kryptonite!” Shame on you, Allen! Don’t you know that The Adventures of Superman was sponsored on radio for a decade by Kellogg’s Pep, which was a now-defunct rival of Wheaties? (Right:) Luis’ father Mario, an accomplished graphic designer, added a sky background to a photo he took, so Luis looks like he's flying.

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Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt!

Oooh, That’s Cheesy! by Michael T. Gilbert

This Cover? Not So Gouda!

he only thing cheesier than a stick-figure cover is, well, no cover at all! And in late 1950, when Lev Gleason’s Daredevil #82 hit the stands, that’s exactly what the kiddies got. Yep, instead of seeing The Little Wise Guys clonking some crook, the readers were treated to a tiny box of type set into a girly-pink cover. Nowadays, you’d call that high-concept. Back then, it was just a big screw-up! So what happened? Who knows? Maybe some artist missed his deadline or the art got lost in the mail. But editor Charles Biro was clearly against the wall with this one. The presses were about to roll, and Charlie didn’t have a cover. What to do? Well, in this case Biro (or co-editor Bob Wood) decided to coverfeature a snappy “Scramblehead” contest—in microscopic type, no less! Did they think larger lettering would be too readable?

So what was “Scramblehead”? Basically a cheesy jigsaw puzzle featuring cut-up pictures of the comic’s kid heroes. The readers could win prizes by snipping the sections out of the comic and pasting them together. The readers were then told to send in the glued pictures along with a 25-word letter “stating why you like the Gleason-Biro-Wood comics best of all.” Cheesy, huh? Me, I like the Gleason-Biro-Wood comics best of all ‘cause they don’t have scary pitchers on the cover! In case you can’t read the type in the box, it says: See Inside Page 11 – “ginzambo flexojo!” For Your Big Chance To Win $100.00. What is Scramblehead? Buy This Issue Quickly! It May Prove To Your Advantage! Is it just me, or does that read like one of those poorly-translated Japanese instructional booklets that tell you how to set up your clockradio? By the way, I’ve tried scrambling and unscrambling the words on the cover—with no luck. So I’m starting my own contest. Go ahead, figure out what “ginzambo flexojo!” means, then send me the answer along with a 25-word letter stating why you love “Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt” best of all. The best entry gets a signed Mr. Monster comic. Nothin’ cheesy about that!

Oooh, That’s Cheesy!

Blue Cheese!! Now what could stack up to a blank cover-illo in the cheesy sweepstakes? How about the “Blue Streak” page at right, sent to me by Golden Age fan supreme Richard Boucher? It may look like a splash page, but it’s actually a cover! Richard explains that, in their final days, Golden Age publisher Holyoke produced a series of cheap Holyoke One-Shot reprints, recycled from comic stories published years earlier. As if this wasn’t bad enough, they also reworked old splash pages like this “Blue Streak” intro taken from Crash Comics #2 and turned them into new covers. Here, the lettering has been removed from the caption and word balloon in panel 1, and “No. 8 - 10¢” and the word “Comics” were squeezed in under the logo. So why not put the price and issuenumber in the empty word balloons? Not cheesy enough, I guess. Worse, the kids who plunked down dimes for one hero would sometimes find a different one reprinted inside. In this case, this “Blue Streak” comic actually featured “Strongman.” Hey, maybe the comic got its name from kids cursing a blue streak after falling for the ol’ bait-and-switch! Cheesy! Cheesy! Cheesy!

The art above is actually the cover of Holyoke One-Shot #8 from 1944-45. It actually reprinted a “Strongman” story from Crash Comics #2 (June 1940). Only thing is, we had a better copy of the cover of Crash #1 than we did of #2—so we reproduced it instead! Who says we can’t get into the spirit of cheesiness? [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt!

Smells Like Limburger!! Then there’s the cover to Toby Press’ Tales of Horror #1. Now we’re really talkin’ cheesy! First they hide the monster’s face under a stupid warning label: “CENSORED! This is The TERROR MAN! Read ‘The Ugliest Man In The World!’” Then, after the gullible kid pays his dime, he finds The Terror Man is actually the lame dork seen in the panel reprinted below! Frankly, my Uncle Hal was scarier! Pretty cheesy, eh? Oh, and bonus points for The Terror-Man with the ice-cream cone, wondering why the little girl in the previous panel ran away. “I only wanted to treat her to an ice-cream cone.” Yeah. Tell us about it, y’cheesy perv!

Homage? More Like Fromage! And, on the cheesy-scale, what could be worse than having the hero literally begging the reader to buy his comic? Nothing! But that didn’t stop Carmine Infantino from drawing the cheesy Flash cover on the opposite page back in the mid1960s! Simon and Kirby’s earlier cover for Adventure Comics #84 hadn’t been much better: “Nobody leave this magazine… a CRIME has been committed!” snarls the hero, pointing to the reader. Talk about intimidation! Geeze! Why don’t you just dope-slap the kid, too, while you’re at it, Sandman? Then there’s the talk-directly-to-the-reader cover from The Adventures of The Fly #3 in 1959. I was eight when my grandma gave me a copy, and I thought this was the most original cover ever! Turns out it was about as original as a carbon copy, as proven by the 1943 Black Hood cover next to it. Cheesy, huh?

Oooh, That’s Cheesy!

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt!

I guess The Black Hood wasn’t too angry with The Fly for swiping his cover. Both seemed downright chummy when they met four issues later in Adventures of The Fly #7, The Black Hood’s first Silver Age appearance. And since both titles came from the Archie guys, it was all in the family, right?

Cheeze! Gimme A Brie, Willya? Speaking of Archie, check out the ad below right from Top Notch Comics #36, drawn by Ed Goggin. This 1943 illustration easily rivals the notorious National Lampoon “If You Don’t Buy This Magazine, We’ll Kill This Dog!” cover for sheer tastelessness. It has everything: sex, sadism, racism, misogyny, and snakes—and all to hawk a wholesome Archie comic! Years later, Archie publisher John Goldwater actually had the nerve to head the squeaky-clean Comics Code Authority! Can you say “cheesy,” boys and girls? That’s it for this issue. Special thanks to Darrell Grimes at Nostalgia Collectibles. And if you’d like to read some incredibly rare Golden Age comics, check out Richard Boucher’s Good Guys & Gals of the Golden Age scan group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GGGA/ I hope you stop by next issue, cheese-lovers—as I’m really quite… er… fondue you! Till next time…

P.S.: Oh, and don’t forget my website: www.michaeltgilbert.com

A Comic Fandom Archive Special Multi-Part Series

Monsters & Heroes At His BECK And Call Notes Toward An Article On The Castle Of Frankenstein Comicon Of 1967 Part IX of “1966: The Year Of (Nearly) Three New York Comics Conventions” by Roy Thomas with Bill Schelly, et al.

es, A/Eficionado, you read it right: this final installment of the Comic Fandom Archive’s long-running series on the three comicons held in New York City during the one-year period between July 1966 and early 1967 is being scribed not by Bill Schelly, but by the editor of Alter Ego. However, I hasten to add that, though Yours Truly was indeed present at each of the above trio of events, I’m covering the last one utilizing virtually no hard information except a very few vague memories, and (more importantly) what’s been provided to me by Bill Schelly himself and by several others, the majority of them actual attendees: Bhob Stewart, Larry Ivie, John Benson, Carole Seuling, and Rich Rubenfeld. Bill had to otherwise beg off on this one, as he completes the writing on a major project that we hope to tell you about real soon, since it’s one that’ll be of interest to virtually all A/E readers. You’ll see. As for that third and final comicon of the period under consideration: it is remembered, if at all, mostly for the appearance there of noted 1930s Olympic athlete and later movie/TV star Larry “Buster” Crabbe—who, among other things, headlined the Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers serials, once portrayed Tarzan, and starred as a Foreign Legionnaire with his son Cubby in the 1950s. The 1967 event is recalled by different people under various names: (a)“The Castle of Frankenstein Con,” after the name of the moviemonster magazine which officially sponsored it—a publication inspired by Warren Publications’ trend-starting Famous Monsters of Filmland, which had debuted in 1958; (b)“The Beck Con,” because its host was that mag’s publisher, Calvin Beck—aided and abetted by his mother, Helen Beck. (c) “The AssociationCon,” because—well, if I had to guess, I’d suppose it was because Dave Kaler had referred to his 1965-66 conventions as “Academy Cons,” connected to the Academy of Comic Book Fans and Collectors, so Beck felt his own needed an equally high-sounding title. Now, onward, with the comments of each of the (mostly) eyewitnesses quoted below separately, and with Ye Editor’s occasional interpolations duly placed in italics—and we’ll see if we can pull together enough information to make up an article on what I’ll refer to hereafter, for the sake of brevity, as the Beck Con.

First, we hear from the gent who was usually listed on the contents page of Castle of Frankenstein as “Editor and Designer”— while Calvin T. Beck was noted as “Executive Editor,” Helen Beck as “Associate Publisher”—and, oh, yes, “Charles Foster Kane” as “Publisher.” Others listed as “Contributing Editors,” incidentally,

Castle of BECKenstein CoF co-publisher Calvin Beck (in a photo borrowed from the website mentioned on p. 54) is seen at top right, replacing a mere werewolf image on the cover of the Castle of Frankenstein 1967 Annual, which Bhob Stewart says came out in mid-1966. This rendering by artist Russ Jones of a “Ghoul Gallery”—not of fans who attended the con—was supplied by Michael Uslan; the “Fearbook” contained a short article by John Benson, “CoF Goes to a Superhero Convention,” but that piece dealt with David Kaler’s 2nd Academy Con of August 1966! (If John ever wrote a piece for CoF on his own July ’66 con, we’re unaware of it.) [©2007 Gothic Castle Publishing Co. or its successors in interest.]

included Joe Dante Jr. (future film director—Gremlins, et al.), Lin Carter (science-fiction and fantasy writer and anthologist), Larry Ivie (see below), Chris Steinbrunner (film buff and historian), Jim Harmon (author of books on old-time radio, et al.), Larry Hama (future Marvel editor, writer, and artist), John Benson (see below), and J. Ramsey Campbell (horror writer in the H.P. Lovecraft tradition). Take it away—

The Castle of Frankenstein Comicon Of 1967

Bhob & Buster

Bhob Stewart This science-fiction and EC Comics expert has worked for various media and pop-culture organizations over the years— including for TV Guide in the 1960s. Bill Schelly writes: “Here’s what Bhob Stewart said (in a telephone conversation on June 4, 2005) about meeting Buster Crabbe in late 1966 or early 1967, which would have led to Crabbe appearing as the Guest of Honor at the so-called ‘AssociationCon’ that Calvin Beck put on in early 1967”: I started working for Calvin Beck on Castle of Frankenstein on the third issue, finishing it up, and then did all the issues from #4 on. Calvin was my friend, but over time I came to realize that his business methods were all wonky. Somehow this thing came up that Buster Crabbe lived in Rye, New York, and we organized this expedition to interview him. This consisted of Calvin, his mother, me, a photographer that was a friend of mine, and a guy named Danny. Calvin had said, “Bhob, Danny is the world’s greatest expert on Flash Gordon.” So we went there, and Crabbe is a very pleasant guy, very friendly, and welcomes us all in. He seems to be “up” and really into all this. Then all of a sudden Calvin says something about TV Guide, and suddenly it hit me: Calvin had told him that we were coming over to interview him for TV Guide! So I called a halt to things, and I said, “Yes, I do work for TV Guide, and I don’t want to be misrepresented here. I have no assignment to do anything with TV Guide regarding you.” When I say that, Beck was like crawling into his chair. On the other hand, Crabbe doesn’t seem the least bit bothered by this. He says, “Oh, that’s okay.” We then proceeded to interview Crabbe anyway. The result was this incredible tape, with like a two-hour, incredible interview with Buster Crabbe. And Calvin gave this tape to Allan Asherman, and Allan Asherman never came back with a transcript. It was such a good interview that it should have been published, instead of just evaporating. Now I understand that the interview wasn’t even important. Beck had phoned up Buster Crabbe, told him people from TV Guide were coming over, and that was his way of gaining access to Crabbe. The purpose was to get Crabbe to accept an invitation to be Guest of Honor at Beck’s convention, which he apparently did. A bit later, in preparation for this article, Bhob sent me an e-mail which I quote:

manner, and Cal and I began some jocular repartee back and forth. The seven (Right:) Buster Crabbe with kid actor Jackie stared at us somewhat like Moran in Universal’s 1939 Buck Rogers serial. they were the children from Village of the Damned now grown into teenagers. They continued to stare, not speaking. Cal and I did all the talking. Soon we got up and left, leaving the silent seven still sitting there. I do not know what this event was. I have the vague impression that Cal arranged for those people to be there and that they were sitting there waiting for him to arrive. (Left:) Bhob Stewart, in a photo taken by Henry Wessel, circa the 1960s.

To specifically answer your question: The 1967 Castle Fearbook and Castle #9 were published simultaneously in the summer of 1966. So issues 9 to 12 carry one through 1966 to 1968. I just looked through every page of these issues, and there’s nothing about any [Beck/CoF] convention. Was this convention you describe a monster con or a comic con? The truth is that Cal had little interest in the comics material I was constantly putting into Castle, and at one point he suggested that my efforts in that direction were destroying his magazine. When I learned about the black-&-white Spider-Man magazine Marvel was putting out, I went to [TV producer] Steve Krantz, got a Spider-Man cel, and designed a wonderful Castle cover with Spider-Man filling the entire cover. My idea was that many readers would mistakenly pick it up, thinking it might be Marvel’s new magazine, and we would sell out the issue. After I completed the issue and left, Cal (without my knowledge) yanked the cover, substituted a washed-out color still from One Million Years B.C., and reduced Spider-Man to two inches in the upper right corner (against a blue background!). When that issue was published, by total coincidence, it went on sale exactly one week before the b&w Spider-Man magazine. As per the Wim Wenders title, “Faraway, So Close!” And typical of how Cal would usually arrive after the parade had passed by…. A personal aside from RT: In answer to Bill Schelly’s queries, I myself told him that I remembered precious little about the Beck Con except that it did exist and I did attend… that it was a confused thing with people milling about in the dealer’s room… and that my most vivid memory was of Calvin Beck’s mother aggressively pushing her way through the crowd ahead of her son, ordering people to make way, make way, as if she were the herald of Julius Caesar.

I recall many things about Cal from 1961 until the time of his death with razor sharpness. At no time did he ever mention to me that he was staging a convention. However, I do recall a curious event that remains somewhat mysterious to me. We were driving around, and he said we were going to drop in on some event at a hotel. We entered a huge empty hotel ballroom. In the center of the room, about ten chairs were arranged in a circle, and about seven or so fairly young people were quietly sitting there. No one else was in the ballroom.

I asked my longtime friend Carole, who in 1967 was the wife of old-comics dealer (and high school teacher) Phil Seuling, and who beginning in 1969 would help Phil put on his first couple of New York comicons, if she was at the Beck Con, and she had this to say via e-mail:

We went over and joined them. Cal began talking in an enthusiastic

If that was the con held at the 23rd Street Y in New York, I was

Carole Seuling

Monsters & Heroes At His Beck And Call

home in the later ’60s when he was working for Woody Gelman at Nostalgia Press.

there (we had a table). Buster Crabbe was an honored guest. Steranko was there, too. Not only did Calvin Beck’s mom run interference for him; she lectured anyone who would listen on the aliens who had recently landed in her back yard! That was one of the creepiest crowds I’ve ever seen at a con—and I’ve been to plenty of comic and sci-fi cons. Mmm… at least we may know now that the Beck Con was held at the 23rd Street YMCA in Manhattan. Now if we only knew the date…!

Rich Rubenfeld Rich was an active early fan, and a member of TISOS, The Illegitimate Sons of Superman, a prominent New York-area fangroup, of which more below. Today he’s a professor of art history at Eastern Michigan University, who has also mounted successful comic art exhibitions at that institution, as well as exhibitions of World War II propaganda and vintage pinball machines. He has also hosted panels of comics professionals in conjunction with the comics shows. In late 2005, he sent these remembrances to Bill for adding to the mix, after Bill e-mailed him that he’d learned the Beck Con was held in very early 1967, not in 1966 as he’d originally believed. Rich didn’t recall much about the con, but his memories of early cons are still worth printing here for context: So, the Beck Con was in early 1967, not 1966. Maybe that is why I had difficulty conjuring memories. Somehow it didn’t sit right that it was the second con I attended; it was the fourth. I’ve had a hard time remembering specific things about the early comicons in NYC. My most vivid memories of those early cons are those involving the people I met who went on to become close friends.

So Who’s Otto Playing? Uncle Marvel? We ran this photo in A/E #20 with an article on Dave Kaler’s 1965 comicon, but it seems appropriate here, as well: Carole Seuling and then-husband Phil, dressed as Mary and Captain Marvel for the masquerade, with Otto Binder, who scripted some of the Big Red Cheese’s most memorable adventures, including the entire “Monster Society of Evil” serial covered last issue. Photo taken by Steve Griffin; courtesy of Steve & David Armstrong.

At the early cons I met Tom Fagan, Shel Dorf, Peggy Gemignani, Mike Friedrich, and soon-to-be pros like Jim Steranko. Beyond that, I think of the joy of being surrounded by people who loved comics the way I did. I didn’t have much money to spend, but I managed to fill in some gaping holes in my collection, including The Brave and the Bold #28 [the first “Justice League of America” story] (a neighbor had borrowed my first copy not long after it came out, but his family moved and I never got it back) and Fantastic Four #3. And I attended what panels and presentations I could. Your recent piece on the Benson Con really brought back memories of Jack Kirby’s speech. In 1968, I was able to have dinner with my neighbor and idol, [artist] Harry Lucey, along with his old buddy Charlie Biro, Tom Fagan, and one of his friends who was a reporter/photographer for Newsday [a very popular Long Island newspaper]. Meeting the pros, of course, was always a thrill.

I do recall that Buster Crabbe attended the Beck convention. I know that he autographed the Frazetta drawing of him [Crabbe] on the back cover of witzend #1. I do recall that Kirk Alyn [star of the Blackhawk and both Superman movie serials] was at that con, as well.

John Benson Asked about the Beck Con, John, who had hosted the July 1966 convention covered in the first seven installments of this series, had this to say, admittedly as hearsay evidence: I don’t remember when Calvin’s con happened, but I know it did happen. I wasn’t there. I heard that Buster Crabbe

I think I mentioned TISOS to you before. I met most of those guys at the 1965 and 1966 cons—Mark Hanerfeld, Marv Wolfman, Len Wein, Ron Fradkin, Stan Landman, Eliot Wagner, and Andy Yanchus. Pat Yanchus, Irene Vartanoff, and her sister Ellen were TISOS members, as well. I got to know Dave Kaler fairly well. I helped with the registration for his Academy Con. He often stayed at my

The Fan, Flash, & Frazetta For young Rich Rubenfeld (center of page), Buster Crabbe autographed the illustration Frank Frazetta had done of him, which was published around that time in the first issue of Wally Wood’s seminal “prozine” witzend. This isn’t that autographed copy, though. [Art ©2007 Frank Frazetta.]

Just Picture Him Two And A Half Years Younger John Benson (on left in photo) at Phil Seuling’s 1969 SCARP-Con, talking to Phill. Courtesy of JB.

The Castle of Frankenstein Comicon Of 1967

was there and was kind-of embarrassed that it was such a shoddy thing.

Larry Ivie Larry was then a prominent New York fan who’d done a bit of pro comics work (for Marvel and Tower) and had illustrated a reprint of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ The Gods of Mars for Canaveral Press. In his pro magazine Monsters and Heroes #5 (1967), in an article with the general title “A History of the Comicons,” he reported the following under the heading for the year 1967: This was the first year to present a convention at the beginning of the year. Instead of waiting for the summer, the AssociationCon was headed by publisher Calvin Beck, and was highlighted by the appearance of filmdom’s Flash Gordon, Buster Crabbe (who spoke about the filming of those serials) and the popular Flash Gordon artist Al Williamson. This theme was continued with the showing of Flash Gordon films, along with those of other heroes, such as Captain Marvel. This convention got off to a good start with advance TV publicity, and a large attendance showing up several hours in advance to begin individual trading. But four hours after the number had reached its peak, there was still no formal beginning, and none in sight. Because of this, most began to leave after completing their trades, and by the time the convention officially began, attendance was sparse. Although there were a number of interesting discussions and film showings during the two-day affair, most were held many hours after their posted schedule, and way beyond the staying time of the younger attendees. [Text ©2007 Larry Ivie.]

Allan Asherman Through the good offices of Marv Wolfman and Len Wein, we managed to reach Allan Asherman, onetime DC editor who currently runs DC’s Print Library. (And before anybody asks—no, you can’t check books out of it!) Allan didn’t recall receiving any Buster Crabbe tape such as Bhob Stewart describes, but had this to say about Calvin Beck and his comicon:

replied. We both had tears in our eyes, and we spoke for a few minutes. Then the woman behind his wheelchair decided it was time for him to go. I waved, he nodded, and when he made eye contact with me one last time and smiled a sad goodbye-smile, I sat down in a corner and cried for Calvin Beck, and for how much more he could have accomplished in some parallel existence. That’s all I can contribute. It’s plenty, Allan—thanks! And, friends and fan-fiends, that would pretty much be that with regard to the little-noted-nor-long-remembered Beck Con of early 1967… if not for a piece which Bill Schelly forwarded from the entertaining and informative website www.bmonster.com, run by Marty Baumann. Writer Tom Weaver’s article thereon does not mention the convention, but deals with Calvin Beck and his mother. We felt it was worth your perusal, and we appreciate both Marty’s and Tom’s blessings to reprint excerpts from “‘Psycho’ Genesis: Who Really Inspired Bloch’s Wacko?”:

Tom Weaver In Psycho [the Alfred Hitchcock movie of the Robert Bloch novel], Mother’s most annoying trait—apart from wholesale murder—is the way she berates and belittles her mama’s boy son. “Probably [Calvin Beck’s mother] did that, too, but I can’t be certain of that,” says Noël Carter. (Author John Cocchi casts a “no” vote.) “But her behavior toward him was extremely aggressive,” Carter continues. “We were in a hotel in New York and there was a big convention going on, and everybody went downstairs to the restaurants. Lin [Carter, her husband and a prominent sf/fantasy writer and anthologist] was in the men’s room and so was Calvin, and I guess they were in there, standing around talking with people. Lin came out, and Mrs. Beck was standing outside the men’s room. She finally knocked on the door of the men’s room and shrieked out, ‘Calvin! Calvin! Come out of there! You’ve been in there long enough!’ That sort-of gave me an idea of what it must have been like to

The time when I was connected to Calvin Beck’s magazine is a blur in my life. He paid me $100 for one of the articles I did for him, but other than that I never saw a penny of his promises. I also lent him many photos that I never got back. There were always creative excuses, but nothing was ever returned. I do not even remember the convention. But I can give you a footnote: Years later, I was at a convention and I saw a thin grey-haired man in a wheelchair. We made eye contact, and after a few seconds I realized that it was Calvin Beck. Working with him had been a series of horrible experiences, but like others I had kept working for him because there was something about him, some eternal child within him, that gave him one of the few positive qualities he had—his sense of wonder. When I saw him like that, so ill, shriveled, subdued, but still glad to be alive, despite my negative experiences with him of long ago I shook his hand and started a conversation. “You talking to me?” he asked. “It’s good to see you,” I

Monsters & Heroes At His Beck And Call

The Table—Pardon Us, Slab—Of Contents

On May 14, 1989, Calvin Beck, age 56, went to that big Editorial Office in the Sky. [His widow] told an obit writer that her husband was a political visionary who (back in the 1950s) predicted the impeachment of Richard Nixon; a civil rights activist who marched with Martin Luther King and was shot and jailed in Alabama; and a movie-TV “ghost writer” whose credits included episodes of Star Trek and Mork and Mindy.” [Text ©2007 Marty Baumann.]

The listing of the articles in the aforementioned Castle of Frankenstein 1967 Annual (a.k.a. “Fearbook”). Thanks again to Michael Uslan. [©2007 Gothic Castle Publishing Co. or its successors in interest.]

be a teenage Calvin, hanging out in the bathroom! [laughs] “To me she said that the sun rose and set on Calvin. But I believe Mrs. Beck hated men, and I think it must have been very easy, once the husband wasn’t around, for her to sometimes take out her aggressions on Calvin. So it would not surprise me to learn that someone had heard her reviling him in some way.”

Note from Roy Thomas to Bill Schelly: Nope, sorry, Bill. Fascinating stuff, and all that—even if I felt it best not to include the part of Tom Weaver’s e-article that quoted folks who claimed Calvin and his mother were the models for Norman Bates and his homicidal parent in Robert Bloch’s Psycho. I know Bhob Stewart fiercely disputes that view, and I myself recall hearing of other models for those characters—nor, alas, is Bloch around to respond to the claim. More importantly, it’s really neither here nor there with regard to the con.

“Only once or twice he got mad,” says Mr. X [an anonymous commentor]. “One day in the living room of their home she was picking on me, and he turned on her and chewed her out. That was the only time I ever saw him do that. He bawled her out and she left the room. I kind-of admired Calvin for doing that—I’d never seen it happen before.”

Like I said: fascinating stuff—but there’s just not enough meat here for a real article.

[Following comments by others, writer John Cocchi says:]

So I think we’ll just have to scotch the whole idea of running a piece on the Beck Con of early 1967.

“I don’t know how much she loved him, but she did seem to have pride in his accomplishments. And she tolerated his weird friends—who were pretty weird! “Calvin was a very knowledgeable buff. He was interested in all the old movies, as we were, and he kept up with the new films, especially the genre-type films that he liked. And I thought his magazine was the best of its kind. I thought Castle of Frankenstein was far better than Famous Monsters [of Filmland], because he took the subject seriously. Famous Monsters was a joke. Calvin never ridiculed the films he was writing about, unless it was a piece of utter junk you couldn’t say anything good about….” “A lot of the writers who worked for Calvin had a hard time getting any money from him,” says Charles Collins, who handled CoF’s book review column. “Mrs. Beck would tell them, ‘Calvin is giving you a break. You should be paying him for contributing to his magazine!’”…. “Beck claimed [CoF] was a small magazine and he couldn’t pay much,” [says “Mr. X”]. “But from time to time, whenever I visited his office-home, I would see a new TV set there, or some kind of expensive-looking hi-fi equipment. I’d ask him, ‘I see things are picking up, Calvin. Do you think you’ll be able to pay me a little more money?’ And he’d say, ‘I’m getting these things on installments’—he always had some kind of excuse….” The Castle of Frankenstein was razed in the mid-1970s, after issue #25 (June 1975), although Beck kept busy with book projects. Then, in the early 1980s, Beck did something that his friends admit they never thought he would ever do. “He married,” Noël Carter marvels. “And she [his wife] was just as dominating and forceful as his mother….”

There’s that phrase again: “early 1967.” Like, we never did even learn in what month the damn thing was held, let alone the precise date! So let’s just forget about it and move on. As they say, life’s too short. Now, what’ve you got on Dave Kaler’s 1967 and final Academy Con—or maybe on the 1969 SCARP-Con thrown by Phil Seuling and friends? Or should I run the remaining piece I have on the first Detroit Triple Fan Fair? At least we know when they happened! Bestest,

Monthly! The Original First-Person History!

Write to: Robin Snyder, 3745 Canterbury Lane #81, Bellingham, WA 98225-1186

In Memoriam

Ernie Schroeder (1916-2006)

A/E

EDITOR’S NOTE: Ernie Schroeder was a remarkable artist, and a remarkable man… and, without meaning to rank in order the worth of people’s lives, we decided to air a somewhat lengthier-than-usual tribute to the artist of “Airboy,” “The Heap,” and so many other comics features, who was interviewed at length for Alter Ego #42, just a little over two years ago. Thus, we asked both Jim Amash, who conducted that interview, and Ernie’s old friend Herb Rogoff, who was his editor at both Hillman and Ziff-Davis comics companies, and who shared space with Ernie in A/E #42, to have their say. Jim first… —Roy.]

“I’ve Never Met An Artist I Respect More Than Ernie” by Jim Amash Glad did I live, and glad did I die, and I laid me down with a will… home is the sailor, home from the sea, and the hunter home from the hill.” —Robert Louis Stevenson. Ernie Schroeder got his start in comics as an assistant to artist Bob Powell. His work first appeared in the Harvey Comics features “Captain Freedom,” “The Spirit of ’76,” and “Shock Gibson.” Ernie soon branched out on his own, working for Parents’ Magazine’s Calling All Boys, Calling All Kids, “Bigbrain Billy,” and True Comics. Ernie found anonymous fame at Hillman Publications, where he co-wrote and drew “The Heap” and “Airboy” features in Airboy Comics in the late 1940s and early 1950s. After that, he co-wrote and drew GI Joe for Ziff-Davis Publications. A few brief stops at a handful of small publishers followed before Ernie left the comic book business. I used the term “anonymous fame” because Ernie never signed his comic book work. Fans only knew he was a singular comic book artist. Fortunately, four-color historian Hames Ware needed a haircut one day and found, at the barbershop, a magazine containing illustrations by Ernie. Hames recognized the style and, though Ernie didn’t sign this work, either, he was credited at the front of the mag. At last we knew the name of the great “Heap” and “Airboy” artist! Unfortunately, we didn’t know anything else about him. When I interviewed Ernie’s former Hillman and Ziff-Davis editor Herb Rogoff, I naturally asked about Ernie, and Herb had a lot to say about his former colleague. In the middle of our discussion, I noticed that he spoke of Ernie in the present tense. “Is Ernie Schroeder alive?” I asked. Herb said he hadn’t spoken to Ernie in a couple of years, but was sure that he was alive, and he supplied me with his phone number.

Ernie And Friends Ernie Schroeder, a few years back— flanked by two pages he drew (and probably also wrote) for Hillman Periodicals’ Airboy Comics, Vol. 8, #3 (April 1951): an “Airboy” sequence at left, a “Heap” exploit below. Ernie’s love of ships and all things associated with them was never more apparent than in the former tale, which deals with an atom-powered vessel. All photos accompanying this article were provided by Constance Schroeder, through Jim Amash & Teresa R. Davidson. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

Ernie Schroeder

When I called Ernie and told him who I was and why I wanted to talk to him, he was greatly surprised: “Why would you want to talk to me? I’m not important. Who would care to read about me?” I pointed out how respected his work was and that his fans had long desired to learn about him. Ernie thought I was nuts and said so. “Does anyone care about those old comics? It was so long ago. Are there even any copies of that stuff still around? This is crazzzyyyy! Are you crazy?” I assured him that I was, but that shouldn’t stop him from talking to me. “Well, if you’re nuts enough to want to talk about my work, then I’m nuts enough to tell you about it.” He laughed in disbelief throughout the entire call, saying, “Are you sure anyone’s going to care about anything I have to say? Are you sure you aren’t crazy?” I told him I was calling from a padded cell, so he should humor me by doing an interview. Ernie roared with laughter, and an interview and friendship were born. Ernie’s memory was spotty on occasion, but his stories were fascinating. His wife Constance had to prod his memory on his various careers a little, because Ernie wasn’t good at dates and times, nor was he convinced that I wanted to know about his after-comics career, which was even more prestigious and impressive. Ernie worked in advertising, built and sailed boats (his real love), built and flew airplanes, was the chief sculptor for the Franklin Mint, drew for the Boeing airplane company, sculpted, painted, and designed, and, with the help of his youngest son, built his own house. My initial call broke him away from a sculpture he was making out of fiberglass. Not an easy task for a man at any age, much less one who was 88. In my experience, Ernie was one of the very few great artists who was totally unimpressed with himself. I asked why he didn’t sign his name to his comic stories. “I don’t know; I never thought about it. I guess I didn’t because my name is so long that signing a story would screw up my composition. I wasn’t interested in being known. I was only interested in the kids.” The most important thing to Ernie was the joy his work brought to others, particularly children. He built a lifesize sabertooth cat for a museum, for free, because he wanted to entertain children. He designed it so the beast’s mouth would open and roar at the children: “The kids get a big thrill out of it. I always get a kick out of seeing the expressions on little kids’ faces when that tiger’s mouth opens. That’s worth every minute I spent breaking my back making that tiger. There’s nothing better than seeing a happy child.” He used to visit the museum, just to see the kids look at his “tiger.” He also built a public fountain just so kids would have a place to get a drink of water. And maybe most precious of all, Ernie used to paint cartoon images on the fingernails of his neighbors’ children. “Oh, you should see how their faces light up when I paint their nails. They run around the neighborhood, showing them off. Their parents said it was a shame they have to wash their hands and ruin the work, but I just paint them again.” Ernie told me about his Merchant Marine friends who were killed by Nazis in pre-World War II Germany, and as he did, he cried. “I feel so sorry for those guys. They had their whole lives in front of them and those damn Nazis killed them for no good reason. And we had to leave them behind. It wasn’t right. They were good people and those damn Nazis got behind them and stabbed them in the back. Those guys never knew what hit them.” He apologized for crying. “I get upset every time I think of those poor guys. These are the tears of an old man crying for his lost friends,” he explained. He was very proud of our interview in Alter Ego #42. “My family thinks I’m a star,” he laughed. “I’ve fooled them again!” He also said, “Everyone says you really nailed the old man. You got my speech pattern down exactly right.” He was so tickled to be remembered, and I thought that maybe, just maybe, Ernie had finally begun to accept that people were interested in him.

Hold That “Tiger,” Ernie! Ernie and the sabertooth cat model he made, now a permanent exhibit at Silver Springs Museum in Silver Springs, Florida. (The beast is sometimes referred to as a sabertooth tiger, though that term isn’t technically correct.)

We talked every couple of weeks. Ernie invited me to come and visit. “Bring your wife. We’ll make so much noise that they’ll throw us out of the house!” he laughed. “We’ll drive the whole neighborhood so crazy that we’ll have to find another place to sleep.” We loved each other’s sense of humor and spent a good deal of our time laughing. When he called me, he’d answer my “hello” with, “Jim. Ern.” He was actively interested in everything I did—enough so that he started looking at comics again, though he wasn’t pleased by the lack of effective storytelling. He was impressed by Moebius and thought he was the best comic book artist he’d ever seen. Ernie found humor in everything. When he talked about working for the Norman Craig & Kummel advertising agency, he giggled, “And they pay you, even when you’re going to the bathroom.” Later, as we discussed building boats and the joy it brought him: “I had guys working for me. And they went to the bathroom a lot. I can’t believe I was paying these guys to go to the bathroom! You see, everything comes back to you in time.” Ernie was a strong, tough man who always did his own work, and that of others if they moved too slow for him. Physical activity intensely defined his self-image. I called Ernie after a hurricane had hit his area. Constance told me that Ernie—at age 88, mind you—was outside, removing fallen tree limbs from his yard. I asked Ernie why didn’t he let others do that work. “Well,” he replied, “I’ll have some help, but I wanted to move those limbs now.” He was a “now” person. Later wasn’t good enough for him. Ernie talked about selling his house and living on a houseboat, something he and his family had previously done: “I love the sea more than just about anything. There’s nothing like the breeze of the wind against your face and the thrill of life on the water. I miss being on a boat. But Constance says we aren’t moving, so I guess we’ll stay here.” Ernie loved the house he built and lived in, but the wanderlust of younger days never left this spirited dreamer. Unexplored vistas were few, because Ernie never looked at life in a rear-view mirror. Any concessions made were for loved ones, not for himself. His family was going to celebrate Ernie’s 90th birthday. “Can you believe I’m going to be ninety?” he laughed. “I can’t believe I’ve made it this far, considering the way I’ve lived. I should have been dead a long time ago! Ol’ Ernie’s going to be 90!” To Ernie, turning 90 was an adventure, not submission to old age. Sadly, he suffered a heart attack a couple of weeks before that birthday. His last months were filled with illness, though Ernie bravely hung on. He didn’t like to burden people with his problems, so the few times he did complain to me, I knew it was getting to him. Still, even in the face of death, he laughed at the

In Memoriam

absurd and the commonplace. The old sailor wasn’t leaving this world without squeezing the last drop of fun out of it. Herb Rogoff described Ernie Schroeder best when he called him a true Renaissance man: “Nothing was above Ernie’s capabilities.” I’ve never met an artist I respect more than Ernie. I consider Ernie’s art career, in its totality, the most varied of any who worked in the comics medium, comics actually being the least of his achievements. A terrific illustrator and even better fine artist, he was successful at everything he did: the complete artist in total command of his craft. He was a do-er who never accepted an inability to solve problems, or thought less of those who couldn’t rise to his level. He was compassionate, considerate, and generous to a fault, touching the hearts of those fortunate enough to have met him. He was the ultimate positive thinker. Somewhere, in a place that the living have yet to discover, is a man sailing a boat. The wind against his face is fierce, but he laughs as he sails onward toward his destiny. His name is Ernest Schroeder, and he left this world better than he found it.

Mammoth Undertakings Ernie Schroeder drew mammoths and a T-Rex in Airboy Comics, Vol. 7, #5 (June 1950)—and look which one got the cover spot! On p. 7, Airboy and his fabulous plane Birdie face the ponderous pachyderms near the North Pole. Several other pages from this story were reprinted with the artist’s interview in A/E #42, with thanks to Jim Vadeboncoeuer, Jr. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.] Many years later, Ernie sculpted a mastodon in bas relief. At left we see it both as a work in progress (as was Ernie, seen with it) and, finished, in place in a Florida museum.

Thoughts Of Ernie Schroeder by Herb Rogoff Jim Amash wasn’t his bubbly self when he called that September day. “Ernie passed away,” he said. “His son just phoned me.” I was saddened by the news that this unusual man, one I had known since 1949, had left us. Even though, at the end, when Ernie’s mind was a scintilla of the vibrant, fertile intellect that had been his hallmark over the years of our friendship, I remembered our last few phone conversations: repetitious—yes—but still a tad lucid. I thought about Ernie Schroeder, and out of the kaleidoscopic designs that ran through my memory, I could fish out but a few that would bring to light the man behind hundreds of comics, drawn but unsigned. Ernie had met Lou Priscilla at my office at Ziff-Davis. Lou was an illustrator, cartoonist, and life drawing teacher at the Art Students

Ernie Schroeder

League in New York City. He had sold cartoons to Colliers magazine, the Saturday Evening Post, and others. He also sold spot drawings to The New Yorker, which the magazine used to brighten up some of those gray pages of type, many of which ran throughout the articles of the sophisticated weekly. Ernie and Lou hit it off right away, enjoying each other’s tales of the vicissitudes of selling illustrations and also the sometime agony of teaching others to try to do the same. The three of us would have an occasional lunch together and a more frequent drink after five whenever Ernie stayed in town after delivering his work to me. One day, Lou came to my office on Madison Avenue and announced the culmination of a life-long dream: he had opened his own art school, a loft over a bunch of stores on Lexington Avenue and 28th Street. Ernie and I went to the school’s opening, highlighted by the proverbial wine and cheese to help kick off the noble project. The place was jammed with Lou’s friends and also with students he had already signed for his life classes. When Ernie and I walked in, Lou made a point of introducing us to his guests, making special mention of Ernie’s position as “the best comic book artist in the world.” A bit lofty, we both admitted, but Lou meant every word, because he had tried to do a comics story for me and failed miserably. Lou also announced that his first life drawing session would take place the next Monday at seven p,m. He asked us if we would be able to make it? Sure thing, we said, and we parted. Monday came around quite rapidly; there was Ernie in my office at a half-hour before closing. We left 15 minutes later with a long time to go for our 7:00 “appointment.” Out on Madison Avenue, we headed for the first bar. This one was an ornate cocktail lounge with fancy lounge prices. It was already crowded two-deep with ad guys. It was brand new and, for only a brief, brief time, it was called The Huckster after the Clark Gable movie of the same name that was making the rounds at

Bodies By Schroeder Ernie did it all! (Left to right:) An ultralight seaplane…a small boat… and a ship in the style of the famous HMS Bounty… all designed and built by Ernie Schroeder.

“A Thing Of Beauty Is A Joy Forever”

that time— upsetting the ad agency industry, I might add. When we got there, two days after its opening, the name had already been changed to the Ad Lib, to stifle the pained cries of the admen up and down Madison. That was why the bar was now crowded; no one on Madison Avenue, obviously, would be caught in any condition in a place called The Huckster. Ernie and I had one Manhattan cocktail (his favorite) and we left.

(Clockwise from above:) A bas relief showing the evolution of the horse, now in the Cracker Museum, Zolfo Springs, Florida… a sculpture designed and sculpted for the Franklin Mint… and a bronze fountain (featuring a deer) he designed and sculpted for Cocoa Village, Florida.

I couldn’t hope to give you any of the names of the other bars we frequented that night (aren’t you lucky?), but I can tell you there were an awful lot of them. And we had Manhattans in each one. I can say that the ambiance of each establishment and the appearance of the bars’ denizens, as we worked our way down town, became seedier and seedier with each wobbling visit. I’ll never know how we held on to our drawing pads and sketching materials. I will say that we arrived right on time; Lou greeted us with great warmth and sincere gratitude that we had kept our word of the week before. He must have been aware of the serious degree of inebriation that was the reason for our staggering entrance, but this didn’t seem to faze him; he was happy that we showed up. Ernie and I occupied the seats that Lou had provided for us. I lifted the cover over my pad and began to sketch the model on the stand. I assumed that Ernie did the same. The model was a lovely young lady. I had put down a few shaky strokes, when I felt a tap on my shoulder. There was Ernie, pulling on a cigarette and reeling as he exhaled smoke away from everyone in the vicinity. “Rogoff,” he announced in a considerate whisper, “we gotta leave. When that gal took her clothes off, she meant business. We’re not ready for business. Let’s go.” I was glad he came up with the suggestion. I surely wasn’t ready for business, or for anything else that evening. I just wanted to get out of there and find some way to get home and to bed. You know, ever since that night, I’ve searched my memory over and over and still don’t know how I ever got home. In fact, Ernie, who had driven in earlier that day from his home in Port Jefferson, Long Island, had put his car in a garage near Madison Avenue in mid-town

In Memoriam

Ernie’s “Heap O’ Xmas” (Above:) Ernie with his wife Connie and son Paul, in a photo taken a year or two ago. (Right:) This 2005 Christmas card featuring The Heap, done especially for Jim Amash, was the last sketch the artist drew. Jim treasures it all the more for that… but he and Herb treasure far more the memory of having known Ernie Schroeder. [Art ©2007 Estate of Ernie Schroeder.]

Manhattan. How he ever got home is a bigger mystery. Before I close, I’d like to tell you that, aside from being the masterful artist that he was, Ernie was also a self-educated boat builder. He told me once that all plans that he would prepare for his boats had to be approved by a certified naval architect. He had designed quite a few boats in his lifetime, and not one of the plans he presented was ever corrected or turned down by the architects. With that and other artistic achievements in mind, I have to say, in closing, that of all the artists I have ever known, I always felt that Ernie Schroeder would be the only one who could be comfortable in Puccini’s garret.

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In Memoriam

Dave Cockrum (1943-2006) A/E EDITOR’S NOTE: The following two pieces commemorate Dave Cockrum’s passing, only two weeks ago as these words are written. Below, two friends of his, Mark Evanier and Clifford Meth, write of their feelings for this gracious and talented artist.

“People Liked His Work, But They Also Liked The Guy Who Did It” by Mark Evanier [NOTE: This tribute combines two posts which Mark wrote soon after Dave’s passing on his website www.newsfromme.com. ©2007 Mark Evanier.] A fine friend of mine and a fine artist, Dave Cockrum, died on the morning of November 26, 2006, from complications relating to diabetes. Dave had been ill for some time and undergoing dialysis treatments. Even so, at Mid-Ohio Con, where I was when I heard the news, his friends and fans were shocked to hear that we’ve lost him. Dave was one of the first people I knew to make the transition from drawing for free for fanzines to drawing for the comics those fanzines were about. Years later, that would become a fairly common segue, but in the early 1970s fans were fans and pros were pros and the former rarely became the latter. Dave did, starting first as an assistant to established artists, especially Murphy Anderson. When Murphy was asked to draw a “Legion of Super-Heroes” back-up story one day, he begged off—“too many characters”—and recommended Dave. Cockrum not only got that job but became the feature’s steady artist and creative heart, helping to redesign the Legion and create new characters. Among

his many strengths, he was a superb inventor of new costumes. Later, he did the same thing—only with greater success—when he and Len Wein revamped the old, cancelled X-Men title into the new, highly successful X-Men franchise at Marvel.

Dave’s Not Here—More’s The Pity Dave Cockrum and (below left) pages of two of the features with which he’s been most identified over the years. (Left:) The “Legion of Super-Heroes” splash from Superboy #201 (March-April 1974), penciled and inked by Dave. (Right:) The splash of The X-Men #105 (June-July 1977), penciled by Dave and inked by Bob Layton. Photo courtesy of Glen Cadigan. [Superboy art ©2007 DC Comics; X-Men art ©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Dave was one of those folks who was genuinely liked. People liked his work, but they also liked the guy who did it. He had an enthusiasm for what he did… or at least, he had it up to the time when taking care of his health became the dominant concern of his life. At the Ohio-Con, a bunch of us were sitting around on the evening of the day he died, lamenting how Dave didn’t get to do so many projects that he wanted to do. And how the fact that he wanted to do them made you feel that they would have been really, really good. He and I were going to do a John Carter of Mars graphic novel once, but the deal fell through. I don’t think you missed anything by not getting my story, but he was so excited about doing it that I know it would have been a very nice book. And I wanted to express my thanks and sympathies to two people who did so much to take care of Dave over the years. One, of course, is his beloved spouse, Paty. I never got to know Paty like I knew Dave, but I know she kept him alive for years and years, despite some formidable misfortunes. Thank you, Paty. And then there’s Clifford Meth, who was Dave’s agent and (even better) his friend…who ran fundraising activities when Dave couldn’t afford muchneeded medical treatment, and who arranged for Marvel to pay Dave a pension. They didn’t do that for very many of the people who gave them their top properties, but they did it for Dave, and we have Cliff Meth to thank for that. One quick Dave story. Dave and I did a couple of Blackhawk stories together. I thought he did a fine job, but Dave was never satisfied with anything he’d done. We were at some San Diego Con, coming back from lunch, when an attendee pounced upon us—and “pounced” isn’t a bad way to describe what this guy did. “I’ve been wanting to get you both to sign this,” he exclaimed, thrusting a Blackhawk issue at us. I scribbled my name, but Dave took a few minutes with

Dave Cockrum

his inscription. He signed the first page of the story, and then he flipped to page 4 or 5 and drew something in the margin. I couldn’t see exactly what it was, but it looked like a hand. As we walked off, I asked him what it was he’d drawn.

X-Men Forever Probably Dave Cockrum’s last drawing is this sketch of Wolverine and Colossus, done for a fan. Clifford Meth’s camera recorded Dave and wife Paty holding it. And smiling. [Art ©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

He said, “I decided I drew Blackhawk’s hand wrong in that panel, so every time I sign a copy, I draw it right in the margin. I’ve done that about 13 times now.” I said, “You can’t fix ’em all, Dave. They printed 150,000 copies of that issue.” Dave grinned through that beard of his and said, “Okay, so I’ve got 149,987 to go.” How do you not like a guy like that?

The Last Days of Dave Cockrum by Clifford Meth My very first column at SBC [Silver Bullet Comicbooks, www.silverbulletcomicbooks.com] dealt with Dave Cockrum. I was hacked off at the time because Dave lay in a hospital bed at a neglected Bronx V.A. facility and didn’t have two nickels to rub together. Despite the fact that he’d created a good portion of the X-Men characters that everyone knows and loves. It was one of those huge injustices that was too large and too close to ignore. I was getting ready for a fight. Perhaps guys like me are always getting ready for a fight. Guys like Dave Cockrum are just the opposite. If it hadn’t been for the burden of his illness, he would never have even mentioned his missing royalties to anyone. For companies poised to exploit that sort of guy, that’s a ready-made sucker, a patsy. But for Dave Cockrum, it was about getting on with life. He was happy to have created what he created, to have found a career drawing comics. He never verbalized any regret about his chosen field. At least not to me, and I was his pal. Dave never considered the road not taken. “What else could I have done?” he’d say. “I love comics!” Dave did love comics—he loved everything about them. He would talk about plot devices and character motivation as seriously as he discussed art technique. He’d been a fan of Murphy Anderson and Neal Adams and Wally Wood and Julie Schwartz, and then he became their student. He’d work closely with Marv Wolfman and Len Wein and Chris Claremont. It was a fan’s dream come true, and Dave never forgot it. It was never about the money. While the mid- and late-’70s were his halcyon days, the ’80s and ’90s brought less and less work. That was largely because Dave wasn’t political. There was no salesmanship to him. What you saw was what you got. He made no efforts to ingratiate himself into the lives of the new wave of editors and so, by the late ’90s, Dave’s work was rarely found in comics anymore. He was effectively forced to retire into obscurity. Without royalties. Despite the fact that he’d created Nightcrawler; that he’d designed Colossus, Storm, Phoenix, Thunderbird, Mystique, The Black Cat, Ms. Marvel, The Starjammers, The Imperial Guard, and The Brood. This last decade was a very tough time for this very capable man. But you’d never have known it. Because Dave continued to make convention appearances across America, where he’d sketch for a pittance (or no money at all, if the fan claimed poverty). Dave always had a smile on his face. He was always a fan’s favorite.

Then came the stroke and the collapse and hospitalization. Then, at last, came the Marvel settlement. Following the settlement, Dave’s last three years were spent in South Carolina. He and his wife Paty moved there from upstate New York, to get away from the cold. Dave spent most of his days in a wheelchair watching television, rarely drawing, reading when he could. He had dialysis on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays—a four- to five-hour affair that always left him drained and exhausted. He knew that a new kidney might change his life, but hoping for one at his age (and in his condition) was like hoping to win the Lotto, and the odds were just about the same. He had no illusions. Despite the ailments and the lack of funds, Dave stayed happy. Not to say there weren’t bouts of depression, but following the comics’ industry tribute that all of you out there gave him, Dave felt somehow fulfilled. He felt he hadn’t been forgotten. Indeed, Dave discovered an entire new generation of fans on the web who were only too eager to talk with him. So, when he could, he’d answer questions and make new e-mates across the globe. He refused to be bitter about anything. The nastiest thing I ever heard him say was, “I wish I had John Byrne’s money and he had my feet.” Dave’s fans, many congregating at NightScrawlers.com, didn’t realize how much of Dave’s waking time was devoted to them. But one fella had it right this morning: “Dear, sweet Dave, taking the time to chat with his fans on a message board up until the end. He really gave us so much more than we had the right to ask for. It’s so hard to believe that Nightcrawler’s dad is gone.” Dave’s last post to his fans came exactly two weeks ago, before he was hammered by a flu. He had just turned 63 and lost his own father on the day of his birthday. In reply to a combo birthday-andcondolence wish from a fan about to visit Tennessee, Dave wrote (on November 12), “Not only did my dad die on my birthday—his second wife died on his birthday. I see an uncomfortable tendency here! Hey, Tennessee’s right next door! If you get that far, you definitely have to stop round here! We’ve got the room here and we’d be glad to have you!” That was my pal, Dave. Gosh, I’m gonna miss him.

In Memoriam

Mart Nodell (1915-2006) “[He] Was Responsible… For A Lot Of Memorable Cartoon Figures” by Mark Evanier

a freelance artist, in or around 1938. He soon started doing work for several comic book companies that either didn’t pay or didn’t pay well. As he later told the tory, he got tired of being stiffed by the smaller firms and decided to make an allout effort to break into the majors. He called up the offices of the biggest publisher, DC Comics, and was told they were full up, but that there might be some work at an affiliated company, All-American. The editor there was Sheldon Mayer.

artin Nodell, the artist co-creator of Green Lantern, died on the morning of Sunday, Dec. 10, 2006, less than a month after his 91st birthday. He had been in poor health of late. Marty was born Nov. 15, 1915, in Philadelphia. He attended the Art Institute of Chicago and, later, Pratt Institute in New York. It was in New York that he began working as

Other Super-Heroes Were Green With Envy Marty [“Don’t call me ‘Martin!’”] & Carrie Nodell at the Stan Lee Roast at the 1995 Chicago Comicon—flanked by the splash of one of his last stories drawn for DC, from Green Lantern #24 (Feb-March 1947), and one of the color photocopies he sold at conventions. This one represented his work at both DC and Timely/Marvel. [Green Lantern TM & ©2007 DC Comics; Captain America TM & ©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Mayer gave him a little work. One day, when Nodell asked what it would take to get steady assignments, Mayer, who was looking for a new feature for the company’s signature title, All-American Comics, told him to come up with a character. Nodell returned a few days later with sketches and the germ cell of a strip called “Green Lantern.” He said the idea had come to him on the subway when he saw a man waving (you guessed it) a green lantern. Nodell also said he wrote and drew the first few pages [Continued on p. 65]

In Memoriam

Andy Warner (1950-2005)

A Real Life Hero by Mark Burbey

DITOR’S NOTE: Because of space limitations, tributes in Alter Ego to recently departed persons are usually limited to professionals… with exceptions made for one or two people particularly associated with A/E itself in its early days. Writer Mark Burbey, however, submitted this heartfelt piece about his friend Andy Warner, who died in 2005… which various circumstances delayed us from printing before now. We wanted to include it both for its own sake, and to remind us all that not all losses to comic books are from the ranks of professionals. Many individuals are recognized as pioneers in the development of organized fandom, from Jerry Bails to David Kaler to G.B. Love. Another name deserves to be added to that list: Andy Warner. Working with G.B. Love in the late 1960s, Andy did much to stimulate the growth of fandom both locally and nationally.

January 2, 1971, “with a budget of roughly $100” covering renting the hall, running a pair of ads in the RBCC, and printing the program booklet. Plugs in the Miami Herald drew a crowd of 160 people, who were treated to original art from G.B.’s collection, a wellstocked dealers area, and a film program including Richard Corben’s Neverwhere and the “Rites of Spring” segment from Fantasia. The highlight of the con was the arrival of Captain Marvel artist/co-creator C.C. Beck. The con was considered to be a milestone and a grand success. Miamicon 2 followed a scant eight months later, this time spread over two days (Aug. 20 and 21, 1971). While less than 200 fans attended over the two-day period, the con attracted such pros, fans, and dealers as Morris Weiss, Dick Briefer, Mike Zeck, Phil Seuling, Gary Brown, and Bud Plant.

In between the cons and for a time thereafter, Andy continued to hold the smaller oneday gatherings, but eventually he decided to sit back and be a fan again. Graduating from Andy Warner, as he’s best remembered. “He was In 1961, limited by the burden of cerebral just an upbeat guy,” his wife said, “who always the University of Miami in 1972 with a palsy, G.B. Love formed the SFCA (South had a smile on his face.” Bachelor’s degree in education, Andy taught Florida Comics Association) and started art in the Miami-Dade School System for a publishing The Rocket’s Blast, one of the year before pursuing a freelance career. He would spend the next 30 first newsletter/fanzines. Working alone, he typed using a pencil years creating murals, sculptures, illustrations, and caricatures that clutched in his hand, pounding out his publications one letter at time. would appear in museums, casinos, hotels, cruise ships, and private Around 1969, G.B. employed a 19-year-old Andy Warner to help him homes. do everything from stuffing envelopes to assisting in the production of the Rocket’s Blast-Comicollector, Fandom Annual, Golden Age, In addition to comics, Andy loved pop music, movies, animation, Rocket’s Blast Special, and other SFCA publications. Listed as classic illustrators, Star Trek, and all things Disney. Andy’s wife Dawn “Assistant Editor” in the indicia, Andy was soon contributing interior said he loved going to Disney World so that he could “be transformed and exterior art, logo designs, and a column titled “Hot Air from a into another world.” Cool Fan.” Despite sporadic ads in Marvel Comics for the SFCA, and occasional mentions in Famous Monsters and Castle of Frankenstein, I didn’t really plug into fandom until I noticed a 5" x 7" card pinned to a bulletin board in a used book store. The card invited all interested parties to join a comic book club. I called the number on the card and was soon welcomed into Andy’s home and into this group of temporary strangers. Among them was G.B. Love, who I would learn was the man behind the ads for the SFCA. James Van Hise (eventual successor to G.B. as publisher of the RBCC) would become a member, as well. It was obvious that this was the focal point of south Florida fandom. Surely inspired by the efforts of Bails, Kaler, Bernie Bubnis, and others, Andy started to rent rooms in local halls and churches for larger monthly comic book meetings. Within months, Andy was making plans for Miami’s first comic book convention. The con was held on

In recent years, Andy and his family helped feed the homeless through a community outreach program in their church, and sent packages of snacks, batteries, DVDs, and other items of need to soldiers in Iraq. In April 2002, Andy was diagnosed with carcinoid cancer. Knowing there was no cure, Andy and his wife maintained hope by pursuing a variety of diet and herbal alternatives. Unfortunately, none of them worked, and Andy passed on May 9, 2005. He was 54 years old. Andy had strayed from comic art, but when faced with his medical condition, he found solace in that which had sparked the dreams of his youth. After his death, Andy’s wife discovered an unmailed letter to James Van Hise, in which Andy wrote: “I remember the sense of wonder, the excitement of Tuesdays and Thursdays at newsstands in the ’60s-’70s, wondering how many

Andy Warner & Mart Nodell

favorite comics would there be. I thought I’d never outgrow comics. Sometimes I thought I’d just become jaded when looking at the latest efforts. I found a trade paperback of 100 Bullets the other day and checked it out. It was well done, but I turn away from the sleazy side. I want heroes. I always have.” He was enjoying Vertigo’s Y: The Last Man and maintained a subscription to Alter Ego. His inclinations as a teacher led Andy to enlist the help of penciler and painter Manuel Aguilera to hold monthly mentoring sessions for aspiring comic artists at Outland Comics in Coral Gables, Florida, calling them “Saturday Heroes.” In the obituary published in the Miami Herald, Aguilera said that Andy “was not just influential in his art, but in his attitude. He was just the type of guy you hoped more people would be.” Andy offered a telling sketch of his moral topography in his letter to Van Hise: “Aside from my parents and family, I learned to embrace ethics from Tarzan, a fictional character who helped others because it was the right thing to do.” It’s not surprising that his last finished work was a painting of Tarzan. Fittingly, Aguilera is continuing the mentoring sessions under a revised name: “Andy Warner’s Saturday Heroes.” As a family man, friend, and teacher, Andy’s enthusiasm for art and life was infectious and inspiring to the very end. His passing carries a reminder to pursue one’s dreams, and his memory will serve to motivate those with the courage to imagine. Mark Burbey has written for RBCC, Comic Art, Charlton Spotlight, The Comics Journal, The Warren Companion (hardcover edition), Comic Book Marketplace, and many other publications. He has also scripted comics for Dark Horse, Fantagraphics, Comico, and Caliber. A 2004 illustration by Andy Warner of one of his favorite Marvel super-heroes. [Silver Surfer TM & ©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

[Mart Nodell, continued from p. 63] of the first story… but he wasn’t a writer, so Mayer brought in one of the comics’ top writers, Bill Finger, to rewrite and finish the first tale. The result was that “Green Lantern,” by Bill Finger and “Mart Dellon,” debuted in All-American Comics #16, cover-dated July of 1940. The character, which drew inspiration from the legend of Aladdin, was an immediate hit on the magnitude of “The Flash” and soon received his own comic. (The All-American company was later absorbed by DC Comics. A new version of “Green Lantern” was created in 1959, and that version remains popular today, although the original Nodell incarnation has also been known to reappear.) Nodell was very proud of his creation and its longevity. Asked why he opted for a pen name on the early stories, he once explained, “A lot of us did that back then. We thought of comics as a way to earn money before we moved on to real illustration work. If you used a fake name, you could disavow the work. Now, of course, I don’t want to.” Marty worked for DC until 1947, then did a brief stint at Timely (Marvel), where he drew Captain America, The Human Torch, and The Sub-Mariner in some of their final appearances before the declining popularity of super-heroes brought about cancellation. He took that as a cue to get out of comics, and around 1950 made the move into advertising work, which he found more satisfying, at least in terms of pay and stability. He was also good at it. Marty was widely credited, here

and elsewhere, with designing several iconic characters, including the Pillsbury Doughboy. Apparently, some of these attributions are arguable, at least insofar as giving him sole credit is concerned. But he was definitely a major contributor and was responsible to some extent for a lot of memorable cartoon figures. In the 1980s, following his retirement from advertising, Marty was rediscovered by comics. He and his delightful wife Carrie could be found on the convention circuit, selling his sketches and often being interviewed by me. Carrie passed away in April of 2004, and, as one might expect, life was rough for Marty after that. They had been married for 63 years. He was a fine gentlemen, and I always enjoyed our conservations. Text ©2007 Mark Evanier, from his website www.povonline.com. Alter Ego featured an interview with Marty in Vol. 3, #5, and has on file a handwritten account of his creation of Green Lantern. It’s been held back because he told Roy Thomas he wanted to write some other memoirs and have them published together. We hope to run the completed material in an early issue… and only wish Marty were still working on that fuller account—because that would mean he was still with us. He and Carrie will be ever missed on the comicon circuit, especially in Florida and at the Heroes Con in Charlotte, NC.

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along. As Dick noted, I had gathered all the film for the chapters that had already been published. In reviewing the film [of the comic pages]—much of which wasn’t in perfect shape to begin with—I was very concerned about how the artwork would reproduce, given the fact there was so much ink-wash and much of the linework itself was so fine. I called Dick to discuss the matter with him and asked if he knew of any way we could get our hands on as many of the original pages as possible and use those as our sources. It undoubtedly would have increased our production costs, but I would have fought for it. Alas, we never got past that stage—October 1998 was right around the corner. At any rate, I’m glad that you, Dick, and Mark Beazley were able to finally get the project finished, and I have to say that it looks great— can’t wait to get the hardcover! Glenn Greenberg Thanks again for your efforts, Glenn. It was truly astonishing to Dick and me that, finally through Mark Beazley’s enthusiasm and efforts, our 180-page Dracula adaptation was finished, thirty years after we began it… and the hardcover was even nominated for an award! In fact, Mark Beazley himself also dropped us a line: Hey Roy, Thanks for including me in the interview. I did have one addendum you might want to include in a future issue. The artwork on page 5 meant to demonstrate the art change by Dick does indeed show a difference between his pencil rough and the final piece—the including of Van Helsing’s medical bag—but the correction I was referring to in the interview is actually on the previous page. If you look at the original artwork from Legion of Monsters #1, Van Helsing enters the room without a bag, but he was carrying one on the page before. For our story purposes, we needed him to still be carrying that bag, so Dick

ooray and Hoo-hah!! We finally have a chance to catch up— at least a little bit—on our woefully tardy letters pages, by doubling up! Fitting, too, because Alter Ego #53-54 contained both a two-part Jim Amash interview with veteran inker Mike Esposito (which garnered more mail than usual) and a double helping of Michael T. Gilbert’s “Comic Crypt” section on Little Lulu writer/artist par excellence John Stanley. First, though, a tip of the hat to this issue's interviewee, Nick Cardy, by Shane Foley, who drew the above homage to the former's 1979 cover for The Spectre #8—which we mistakenly credited to Murphy Anderson back in A/E #44. Thanks, Shane! [Art ©2007 Shane Foley; Alter Ego TM & ©2007 Roy & Dann Thomas.] First, a letter or two re #53’s three-way conversation between artist Dick Giordano, editor Mark Beazley, and Yours Truly on Marvel’s Stoker’s Dracula, the four-issue series and collected graphic novel that adapted Bram’s brimstone-laden book. Glenn Greenberg, a Marvel editor in the 1990s, was the first person there who was seriously interested in collecting the 78 pages of the g.n. Dick and I had done in 197375. When Dick and I approached the company in the ’90s about leasing the rights to the material so we could finish and publish it ourselves, Glenn gave us an option Marvel was far more likely to accept, even if things didn’t quite work out… and he appreciated our remembering it: Dear Roy, Just wanted to thank you and Dick Giordano for mentioning me in Alter Ego #53, in your article about the making of your Dracula adaptation. I still regret not being able to bring the project to completion—my departure from Marvel in October 1998 [in a corporate downsizing] prevented that from happening. And apparently no one else working at the company at the time shared my great enthusiasm for the project. Thankfully, editor Mark Beazley eventually came

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[comments, correspondence, & corrections]

drew a patch over a printout of the page to fix it for our final printed version. Mark Beazley We stand corrected, Mark, as witness the art spot at the bottom of this page. You’ll always be a hero in Dick’s and my book. Now, for a reaction from a pure reader as opposed to a real or potential editor of the adaptation, here’s regular correspondent Henry Kujawa, no mean cartoonist himself, and the creator of Storm Boy: Hi Roy, I guess it was a different editorial regime, but I can recall wondering why they didn’t get you and Dick to finish the adaptation when they did those six issues of Tomb of Dracula as a black-&-white magazine. (But then, the editorial regime at the time succeeded in driving away both Marv Wolfman and Gene Colan, so—no surprise, I guess.) Beazley’s comments about the Coppola film [Bram Stoker’s Dracula] are well taken. I was in a particular emotional state when it came out that allowed me to really appreciate the film on so many levels. But, talking over the book with a friend who read it, and then listening to the book-on-tape narrated by Robert Powell, I could see where it deviated—despite all the claims of being “authentic.” If you really want “authentic,” see the BBC version with Louis Jourdan and Nigel Davenport. Excellent!—and it’s what the Beeb does best, “period” adaptations. Henry Kujawa I don’t believe I’ve seen that one, Henry, but will have to catch it sometime soon. Now to comments on that massive two-part interview Jim Amash did with Mike Esposito, who for many years was the inking half of the team of Ross Andru & Mike Esposito. First, a few words on #53 in general from Nick Caputo, who himself wrote about Werner Roth, Paul Reinman, and Don Heck back in issue #42: Hi Roy, As usual, A/E #53 was enjoyable and informative. Mike Esposito makes a great interview subject, and I particularly enjoyed the coverage of the 1966 Comicon. Bill Schelly truly gives one a feel for that particular time and atmosphere. I look forward to future installments. One addition: You are correct about the Ditko art on page 18 being from a Charlton comic. It’s from Haunted #7 (Aug. 1972). Love that splash, inspired by Lon Chaney’s Phantom of the Opera, I’d guess! Nick Caputo Duly noted and notched, Nick… thanks. Bill Schelly

Dr. Van Helsing Gets Left Holding The Bag (After thirty years, anyway!) As Marvel reprint editor Mark Beazley points out, in the final panel of the Dracula adaptation chapter from Legion of Monsters #1 (Sept. 1975), shown at left, Doc wasn’t depicted with the medical bag he’d had when he arrived on the preceding page—so artist Dick Giordano added it (see right) for the reprinting in Stoker’s Dracula #2 in 2004. Script by Roy Thomas. [©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

himself had this to say about the Esposito confab in #53-54: Hi Roy, In terms of sheer information about what it was like to be an inker for DC and Marvel in the last half of the 20th century, Jim Amash’s Mike Esposito interview may be the best interview ever done. The earlier portions of the interview were good, but the part in #54 really zeroed in on the timeframe that interests me most. Mike’s memory is incredible, and Jim egged him on perfectly. What’s especially refreshing is the more dimensional picture Mike gives than some, a sort of “warts and all” approach—made palatable because there doesn’t seem to be a mean bone in Mike’s body. For those who wonder what it was “really like” (me, for example) from mostly a professional standpoint (but sometimes personal), this was one great piece. I know I must seem like a cheerleader, but heck—I’m one of A/E’s biggest fans. Bill Schelly I know how you feel, Bill. I have to put the issue together each month, with the help of layout man Chris Day and our several editors, so I can read it myself. In the interview, Mike voiced his feelings (unfavorable, naturally) about not being able to ink his longtime partner Ross’ pencils on the epoch-marking mid-1970s Superman vs. Spider-Man, the first superhero crossover between DC and Marvel. He seems to have felt that Len Wein and Marv Wolfman, who were then editors at the latter company, had something to do with this decision, but Marv Wolfman respectfully begs to differ: Roy— Thanks for letting Mike Esposito know that it wasn’t either my or Len’s idea to hold back the pages. He obviously has a grudge against us because he thinks we were the ones who took him off the Superman vs. Spider-Man book, costing him royalties; but I wasn’t even in the color department, and Len wasn’t allowed to have any say on anything connected with that book. I wish he’d realize he was bad-mouthing us totally mistakenly. Marv Wolfman We’re glad to be able to air your views, Marv. Sometimes it’s hard to get to the bottom of decisions made in the comic book

re:

industry—or anywhere else. Daniel Best is the author of a book about Andru & Esposito which may be on sale by the time this issue is published, and his researches led him to offer a few cogent comments of his own on our Esposito interview (to which, by the way, he contributed generously): Hi Roy,

We concur that A&E’s parody of the classic movie western Shane was very much in the vein of Harvey Kurtzman’s work in the early fourcolor Mad, Daniel… and it’s gratifying to hear that a comics legend like Alex Toth thought so, too. Thanks for all the info. One reader, at least, was underwhelmed by the Esposito interview… and while Andy Patterson’s letter pretty much stands alone in our mailbox, here are a few excerpts from his missive:

A few points that might be of interest: The Flash: I have a quote here from Ross where he claims that he tired to make The Flash into a Marvel-style super-hero, all bulk and muscle, but clearly it didn’t work. I kinda like the Andru/Esposito Flash myself, and interestingly, the few pages of original Flash art I have are the cleanest A&E pages I’ve seen. Andru & Everett: Funnily enough, when Bill Everett inked Ross Andru, he unknowingly gave us some of the best examples of what pure Andru pencils look(ed) like. When people decry Mike as an inker of Ross’ work, well, imagine getting those pencils days in and day out and turning them into the masterpieces we’re used to seeing. I’ve looked at Ross’ pencils on his newspaper strips and scratched my head in amazement at just how Mike was able to turn it all into solid art. Re Mister Universe #5: I don’t believe that A&E even touched that book. I’ve long suspected Walter Palais, and Mike once told me that he doesn’t remember doing any art for it. Plus, the indicia has no mention of Ross and Mike, while previous issues all have the MR details (albeit the books are credited to “Media Productions”). Plus you’ll notice that Ross and Mike signed earlier issues. I also have my doubts about issue #4—the cover is certainly that of issue #2 statted up and retouched, but there’s no mention of MR. I believe they’d lost the book by that stage, but there’s probably A&E inventory art inside. I asked Alex Toth about Mike’s claims that Toth did the cover for their 3D magazines. He couldn’t recall it and said it’s unlikely that he worked for them. Toth did say that “Strain” was one of the best Mad-type parodies he ever saw. All in all, the two-part interview was a great piece of work, and the recognition of Ross and Mike was well overdue. Daniel Best

Right On Target (Top of page:) A penciled self-portrait of Golden/Silver/Bronze Age artist Mike Esposito, drawn especially for A/E #53-54—but accidentally left out of them! Better late than never, huh, old poker buddy? [©2007 Mike Esposito.] (Above:) One of the earliest Andru & Esposito Wonder Woman splash pages— from ish #103 (Jan. 1959). [©2007 DC Comics.] (Right:) Besides the drawing that was used as the cover of A/E #54, Mike also re-created this Andru & Esposito Wonder Woman cover for fan Joel Thingvall, who collects drawings of the Amazon like they were going out of style. [Wonder Woman TM & ©2007 DC Comics.]

Dear Roy, While I’m very pleased that Ross Andru, a favorite artist of mine (and my all-time favorite Spider-Man artist) was featured, I have more than mixed feelings about the feature. I thought the spotlight on him would be a little more pleasing and not so garish. I don’t expect every detail to be glowing, but wow, I would have to say I didn’t find a lot of positives: “Ross’ pencils were scratchy, crude,” whatever it was… “Ross didn’t understand or know how to draw SpiderMan.” I’m paraphrasing, but Esposito and Amash were basically in agreement about Andru not being the best choice for Spider-Man. “He drew him too stiff.” Have those guys looked at his stuff? I wholeheartedly disagree. My brothers and friends and I always thought he was the most Spider-y of Spider-Man artists. Andru had such power and drama to his figures. Such emotion for a character with no facial expressions on his mask. He drew so cinematically. Where were the raw pencil pages examples of this sketchy crude work? I would like to see that.

[comments, correspondence, & corrections]

caveat about that interview: Roy— I found your Esposito interview fascinating. One thing that surprised me is that there was no discussion of Andru’s strong dislike of working in comics. Here’s a guy who hated every minute of it, from what he told me himself, and also from what I’ve heard he told others. Seems like that would rate a mention! It seems there was a discrepancy between the interview and one of Roy’s captions. Esposito says that Harry Harrison wrote the two-page text in the first issue of Get Lost. He doesn’t say specifically that that was the only thing Harrison wrote for Get Lost, and particularly whether he wrote the dead-on parody of the EC horror comics, “The Sewer Keeper’s” tale of “Marsha and Jon,” drawn by “Sickly.” (This is not to be confused with the two-page “John and Marsha” story that Esposito says was drawn by Ed Haas, which appeared in the first issue and was actually titled “Don and Martha,” a takeoff on the best-selling Stan Freberg single “John and Marsha.”)

Jimmy Stewart Isn’t The Only One With Vertigo! Us, not like Ross Andru’s Amazing Spider-Man art? Whatever their misgivings, you won’t find Mike Esposito, Jim Amash, or Ye Editor in that corner! Here’s the splash from Giant-Size Marvel Team-Up #5 (July 1975), as reprinted in The Essential Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 7. Nobody ever drew high-angle shots any better, or with more depth of field, than Ross Andru! [©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Now here is a point I will concede: Andru was really best with a good inker. Frank Giacoia was the man as far as inking Ross Andru. A fact I don’t believe anyone has recognized or pointed out. By the by, I don’t remember if he’s ever been fully featured, but Giacoia sounds like a fascinating fella to spotlight. I believe Ross Andru to be more of a skilled draftsman than this article delivered. Of course, this is just my opinion, but it really drives home feelings I’ve had for many years that no one appreciates or can see this man’s genius but me and maybe five other people. I appreciate what you do, Roy, but I’ve waited a long time for this one and feel a bit let down. Andy Patterson Sorry you feel that way, Andy, but we feel you very much misinterpreted the general thrust of the interview. Jim and (of course) Mike are huge fans of Andru’s work, as am I. They simply have a different view of what his strengths and weaknesses were. Sorry if we can’t concur in your view that you’re in possession of the ultimate truth about the value of Ross’ art, but then, we don’t think anybody is in possession of the “ultimate truth” about much of anything! We’re glad to air your opinion, though. John Benson, who started out in EC fandom in the 1950s and hosted the 1966 comicon coverage of which started in #53, had an added

Can You Stand The “Strain”? We printed three of the 6 pages of Andru & Esposito’s Shane parody back in A/E #53—so here’s one more: the start of the famous scene in which the boy, played by Brandon DeWilde, runs after the departing Alan Ladd. As we said at the time, we concur with John Benson’s view that “Strain” was one of the best of the stories done for the many four-color Mad wannabes back in the mid-1950s. Netherlands collector Ger Apeldoorn is hard at work, even now, on a gargantuan article about Get Lost, Panic, Whack, Crazy, Madhouse, Nuts, and all the rest of ’em! This page is reprinted from the 1987 Get Lost #1 (reprint) done by New Comics Group. [©2007 Mike Esposito & Estate of Ross Andru.]

re:

Since Andru and Esposito did work for the Story comics horror titles (Fight against Crime and Mysterious Adventures), I also wonder if Mike has any recollection of what Harry Harrison had to do with the Story outfit, either as editor or writer. John Benson At John’s request and with Mike Esposito’s okay, I gave put the two of them into contact. A few days later, John e-mailed: “FYI—Esposito says that your supposition (in a caption) that Harrison wrote ‘Strain’ for Get Lost is wrong.” Sorry about that—it was only a bad guess by Yours Truly that future science-fiction great Harry Harrison “probably” wrote it. Someone had told me that, but my wording should’ve been more qualified. Anyway, glad to finally set the record straight. Maybe Ross Andru’s dislike of working in comics—first for Burne Hogarth on the Tarzan comic strip, then for the rest of his life in comic books—somehow didn’t get spelled out in the interview, but I believe I mentioned it elsewhere—maybe in A/E #50?

Roy— First, thanks to Richard Kyle for his kind words about my Bettie Page comic book script. I’m honored. Second, I must respond to the comments of Mike Vosburg, who is a pal, by the way. I think I can comfortably speak for Dave Stevens (because we have discussed this) when I say that neither he nor I ever considered the cover of Bettie Page Comics to be racist. It was simply a satire of Thun’da #1’s cover, and, what’s more, it matched the story Dave and I wrote inside the book, which I wouldn’t call racist on any level. But satire is in the eye of the beholder. I’m sure Mad TV and Saturday Night Live have run bits that many would consider racist, while others would consider them satiric homages to other works. That’s what we had in mind here. Is The Simpsons racist for running continuing jokes about an Indian named Apu who owns a convenience store franchise? It’s humor, Mike. But humor’s subjective, and if it didn’t work for you, I’m sorry. Jeff Gelb Mediabase-Premiere Radio Networks 15260 Ventura Blvd., Suite 300 Sherman Oaks, CA 91403

Next, a couple of corrections from datameister Alberto Becattini of Italy: Dear Roy: A couple of notes concerning the Mike Esposito interview in A/E #54: On page 28, Esposito mentions an unpublished syndicated strip he, Ross Andru, and Marv Wolfman had sold the Daily News [syndicate]. Mike calls it The Unexpected, but its actual title was The Unexplained. On page 32, an Incredible Hulk daily is shown, its inking attributed to Mike. Actually, that particular strip was inked by Frank Springer, who inked the Hulk dailies from Nov. 20, 1978, to Jan. 1, 1979. I guess Mike took over inking right after that. Alberto Becattini Thanks, Alberto. You have a couple of pieces back-queued for publication in Alter Ego, and I sincerely hope we can get around to airing them soon! Your additions to our various checklists, etc., are always much appreciated, I assure you. One piece that stirred more response that I’d have thought was reaction to my old fandom friend (and longtime pro artist) Mike Vosburg’s castigation of Dave Stevens’ cover for Bettie Page Comics, which was run with Bill Schelly’s interview with fan (and pro writer) Jeff Gelb in A/E #48, and of Ye Editor for reprinting it. I disagreed in print with Mike’s analysis in issue #53, but Jeff had this additionally to say:

It’s always a problem, Jeff, to figure out where satire ends and offense-giving begins. But of course, in a certain sense, there may be no such thing as offense-giving… but only offense-taking, since, as you say, such things are decided by the beholder, especially when clearly no racial offense was meant. My own view is almost identical to yours, even though I have nothing but respect for Mike Vosburg as both person and artist. In fact, Mike himself responded to my response thus: Roy, Do you realized that in my 40+-year time in fandom and in comics, I’ve had only two letters that I’ve seen published… and in both of them I’m taking a potshot at you. It’s coincidence, of course, since I really do think you’re a prince of a guy, and you were certainly instrumental in my getting my first job at Marvel. Now that’s a funny story: I was a very quiet young man and was always taught to defer to the person in authority if they were speaking. You were trying to work out a rate for me. You started with a low number and, when I gave no response, kept upping the ante until you finally cut it off at what I thought was an astronomical figure (I think about $32 a page for pencils). At the time you might have thought I was really playing hardball as a negotiator, but I was just being polite and waiting until you finished. To paraphrase Bridget Jones, you had me at $22 a page.

Hulk Ink! Alberto Becattini says Mike Esposito must have taken over the (unsigned) inking of the Incredible Hulk newspaper comic strip as of Jan. 2, 1979. If so, then this strip for Jan. 13, ’79, probably represents one of Mike’s early efforts on the feature. Repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Larry Lieber; his and Stan’s credit is seen at left, not yet pasted onto the strip. [©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

[comments, correspondence, & corrections]

So while I have my bitches about my time in comics, none of them involve you. I’m not sure we ever got to work on anything together, either, except that one “Conan” story. I am a major fan of Alter Ego. I really enjoy reading the interviews with so much of the talent from the early years of comics. Keep up the great work. Oh, have you seen Chronicles of Narnia yet? I spent a couple of years storyboarding the feature and I’m really proud of it. It’s a treat to be connected with something that is not only a major financial success, but also a critical one. Mike Vosburg Congrats on your Narnia work, Mike. But I’m afraid I have no memory whatever of that “hard bargaining” incident between the two of us, although I won’t argue overmuch with your recollection of it. Whatever you wound up getting as your starting rate back in the 1970s, I’m sure you were worth it—as the “Voz” art on this very page should solidly certify. Not to surround you with others’ commentary on your comments on that Dave Stevens piece, but it was one of several things that another longtime pro, writer Mike W. Barr, mentioned in his own epistles on A/E #53-54, so…

up television as a model for comics… but come to think of it, those writers do have a union, don’t they? Of course, in his later years, debating—even rational discussion—with Kanigher was like trying to argue with a deaf man whose eyes were closed. Once he stated his argument, that was it. Case closed. Reason need not apply. Move out, Easy, break’s over. And, due to the model of television cited above, I can easily believe that Bob Kanigher and not Bob Haney was the creator of Sgt. Rock. Though Haney’s “The Rock of Easy Co.” may have been the first story of Rock with Easy Co., “The Rock” by Kanigher—which appeared a month earlier—certainly contains many of the basics of the character. Bob (Haney) did have some long-lasting sore feelings for Kanigher, referring to him more than once as having “a von Richthofen complex,” as well as having been consumed with guilt for not actually having served in the armed forces during World War II. (I’m not saying either charge is true; I’m just quoting.)

As to Robin Snyder’s participation in this Battle of the Bobs, he seems to have taken Kanigher’s statements as wholesale truth. He commits The Ghost And The Glamor Girl the same error Kanigher attributed to Dear Roy: Just to prove there are no lingering hard feelings Haney when he (Snyder) repeats the story In #53’s lettercol, you rolled over too between Mike Vosburg and Roy Thomas over the that Kanigher created “[The] Flash.” Kanigher little matter covered in this issue’s “re:” section, easily when Mike Vosburg hammered you may have come up with many of the character here’s a great illustration Mike sent us of The with the charge of racism. It doesn’t seem to traits we associated with the Silver Age Flash Spectre and his own fabulous creation, Lori have occurred to you that the Dave Stevens (though let’s not forget the considerable Lovecraft. Nice, huh? [The Spectre TM & ©2007 DC drawing of Bettie Page and some allegedly participation of a guy named Schwartz, who Comics; Lori Lovecraft TM & ©2007 Mike Vosburg.] racist stereotypes was actually a study in christened his secret identity), but the Silver exaggerations all the way around. (You Age Flash would not have existed without the mentioned something like this in your reply, but didn’t carry it Golden Age Flash, which was created by Gardner F. Fox and Harry through.) Sure, the native warriors were stereotypes, but so is the Lampert. Saying Kanigher created The Flash is like saying Larry caricatured “Bettie Page,” with that impossibly lush figure and Gelbert created M*A*S*H. Gelbert developed the TV version of the brainless stare. Why not call that “sexist”? Further, to call Frank hit movie, and Kanigher developed the Silver Age version of the Frazetta’s cover to Thun’da #1 “worthy of the Third Reich” is Golden Age character. linguistic overkill that serves no purpose save to alienate the very And listing a number of sources that credit Kanigher as the creator people you’re trying to persuade. of Sgt. Rock proves nothing. Some people think Stan Lee created I do hate Political Correctness. Superman. Regarding #54: I’m afraid none of the major participants—Robert And while we’re talking credits, who really did write “Combat Kanigher, Bob Haney, and Robin Snyder—in “Who Created Sgt. Tag,” from G.I. Combat #55? Robin Snyder says Bill Finger, while Rock?” covered themselves with glory. Kanigher’s contribution, your box on page 51 credits it to Kanigher. [NOTE: We’ll have to “409966” (which means what, by the way?), opens by castigating the defer the answer to that till later, I’m afraid. But Robin’s probably very fans from whom he made his living all those years, then descends right. —Roy.] into condescension. He writes, “Haney said he wrote ‘The Rock of While I’m at it, I believe the co-author of When Worlds Collide, Easy,” which [Mike] Gold said was the first Rock. Then Gold said I mentioned at the bottom of page 54, was Edwin Balmer, not Palmer. created Rock. The two are irreconcilable.” But I could be wrong. Not at all. Gene Roddenberry created the characters of Captain Mike W. Barr Kirk and Mr. Spock in Star Trek, yet Samuel Peebles wrote the pilot that sold the series, the first episode to feature Kirk and Spock, “Where You’re not, Mike. Thanks. We were delighted that Robin Snyder No Man Has Gone Before.” It’s common in TV for a creator not to allowed us to reprint the debate that had run in his magazine The write the pilot for the show, yet to still be credited as the creator. Pilot Comics! between Kanigher and Haney, and figured that readers could writers often work from notes and even outlines provided by series decide for themselves “Who Created Sgt. Rock.” In a certain sense, creators, yet still receive sole credit as the writer. Not that I’m holding clearly, several people did. And that’s often the case. I know that when

re:

I broke down the “creation” of Luke Cage, Hero for Hero (later known as Power Man) for “my” 2006 book Stan Lee’s Amazing Marvel Universe, I had to honestly list no less than six people who had contributed in one major way or another to the character just in that first story: Stan Lee, Archie Goodwin, George Tuska, Billy Graham, John Romita, and myself. Any one (or even two) of those who had claimed full credit for that creation would be, in my less than humble opinion, just plain dead wrong. And so it is with so many things… with the creators themselves often no better equipped to make such judgments than are the readers. Robin Snyder himself, who makes a mighty contribution to the cause of comics scholarship each and every month with his own publication, had this to say:

1966” about whether the cover to King’s Flash Gordon #7 was drawn by Reed Crandall. Nope, it’s a reprint from a panel drawn by Mac Raboy for his October 10, 1948, Flash Gordon Sunday page. The interiors of that issue were all drawn by Crandall, though. Ray A. Cuthbert

Rock On! Just to show Don Mangus we’re not sore at him for calling us “Ray” (after we referred to him as “Dan,” momentarily confusing his name with that of fellow collector Dan Makara), here’s another of the great Joe Kubert “Sgt. Rock” breakdowns Don sent us for a story in a 1976 issue of Our Army at War. See how generous we are? We actually allow folks to provide us with such treasures! [©2007 DC Comics.]

Dear Roy—

Luckily, at least the cover was there in conjunction with a photo of King Comics editor Bill Harris, not possible artist Reed Crandall. I should’ve recognized Raboy’s work, since he was the illustrator of Flash Gordon when I first started reading that strip, in black-&-white, in the Grit newspaper that was delivered to our home each week… but I thought Crandall might’ve been imitating a Raboy or even Raymond drawing. Lynn Woolley had these comments on presentation of his

“Metal Men” article in #54:

Good presentation of material from The Comics! One correction: RK gave me the rights to the articles and essays and letters we published in The Comics! so the copyright is now mine. And that Kubert page you published on page 47 is from Our Army at War #242 (Feb. 1972). Joe, not Kanigher, wrote it. Robin Snyder Bad guess… sorry. I shouldn’t have indicated the piece was “almost certainly scripted by Robert Kanigher.” I made another goof or two in that area, as Don Mangus pointed out: Hi Roy, You did it again to me! Page 48, my Kubert thumbnail sketch: Heritage Auctions never sold that art. I bought it through a friend in a private deal. Also, you called me “Dan” in print, so now I am going to have to refer to you as “Ray” in all my Heritage art descriptions just to get even!

Dear Roy, I’m glad you found a home for my Metal Men article, after it sat in my file cabinet for about 27 years. Funny thing is that I was never much of a Metal Men fan, though I read most of the run. I was assigned the article for DC for Amazing World—and that’s how I came to write Bob Kanigher about details of the strip. (The intro, though, credits me as having written “several books on comics.” I have written several books but none on comics. My second book, The Last Great Days of Radio, did have a long chapter about Larry Herndon.) The “Comic Crypt” piece on John Stanley was outstanding. I had read Rick Veitch’s story in Greyshirt about “The Lure” and thought it was a classic monster. I never knew how classic, since I had never read “The Monster of Dread End.” I couldn’t help but think how much better Stephen King’s It would have been if King had used the Dread End Monster. If I ever run across a copy of Ghost Stories #1, I’ll grab it. Lynn Woolley

Otherwise, I really enjoyed A/E #54.

And thanks for giving us an excuse to run a piece of John Stanley “Little Lulu” art we’ve had on hand for a while now, Lynn!

Don Mangus And “Ray Thompson” thanks you for your generosity of spirit, Don. Here’s a bit more added information, this time courtesy of your fellow collector Ray A. Cuthbert: Hi Roy: In A/E #54, there is a question on page 67’s “’Comics Today’ if Today Is

Little Lulu, We Love You-Lu Just The Same Although Lynn Woolley discusses John Stanley’s famous story “The Monster of Dread End,” the writer/artist is primarily remembered for his landmark work on Dell’s Little Lulu comic book in the 1940s and ’50s. And that gives us a chance to (finally) run this great John Stanley drawing sent to us some time back by Charlie Roberts. [Little Lulu TM & ©the respective trademark & copyright holders.]

Finally, we were gratified to receive the following from Jean Siegel, the daughter of the late pro artist Sam Kweskin, whose passing was noted in A/E #54:

[comments, correspondence, & corrections]

Kweskin Could Draw! Sam Kweskin drew virtually all genres of comic books at one time or another. At left, courtesy of Dr. Michael J. Vassallo, is a powerful splash from a tale of World War II concentration camps, from Battlefield #9 (March 1953). [©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Dear Mr. Thomas: I wanted to say “thank you” for the wonderful article about Dad and his work. I must say it only scratches the surface regarding his many talents. I could write a book, though he already did, about what he had accomplished during his life. Reading Michael Vassallo’s article about Dad brought a smile to my face and tears to my eyes. It was wonderfully written (though there may have been one or two mistakes). I will treasure my copy of Alter Ego #54 always. Jean Siegel And we’ll treasure the fine work that Sam Kweskin did for all those years in comic books, Jean—most notably for Timely/Marvel. I had the pleasure of meeting him on a couple of occasions in the 1970s when he drew “Dr. Strange” and Sub-Mariner tales for Marvel, and he was a great guy. Doc V., who penned the tribute in #54, still plans a longer piece on Sam for a future issue of Alter Ego. Till next issue, send those e-gregious e-mails and other correspondence to: Roy Thomas e-mail: roydann@ntinet.com 32 Bluebird Trail fax: (803) 826-6501 St. Matthews, SC 29135 And remember—don’t miss next issue’s dynamite double-header—on Golden & Silver Age master artist Bob Powell, plus a tantalizing look backstage at Marvel Comics’ parent company Magazine Management in the sizzlin’ 1960s!

Illustration by Emilio Squeglio

U.S.A. borders! Some of his references, however … cast in our direction, were cause for an occasional fidget: “Another artist who drew Fawcett’s leading character … as a barrel-chested, beefy guy who didn’t look quite as tall as he should have …” I’m glad John wasn’t around with that kind of talk to influence my employers … who always seemed quite happy with what I was doing. By

[FCA EDITORS NOTE: From 1941-53, Marcus D. Swayze was a top artist for Fawcett Publications. The very first Mary Marvel character sketches came from Marc’s drawing table, and he illustrated her earliest adventures, including the classic origin story, “Captain Marvel Introduces Mary Marvel (Captain Marvel Adventures #18, Dec. ’42); but he was primarily hired by Fawcett Publications to illustrate Captain Marvel stories and covers for Whiz Comics and Captain Marvel Adventures. He also wrote many Captain Marvel scripts, and continued to do so while in the military. After leaving the service in 1944, he made an arrangement with Fawcett to produce art and stories for them on a freelance basis out of his Louisiana home. There he created both art and story for The Phantom Eagle in Wow Comics, in addition to drawing the Flyin’ Jenny newspaper strip for Bell Syndicate (created by his friend and mentor Russell Keaton). After the cancellation of Wow, Swayze produced artwork for Fawcett’s top-selling line of romance comics, including Sweethearts and Life Story. After the company ceased publishing comics, Marc moved over to Charlton Publications, where he ended his comics career in the mid-’50s. Marc’s ongoing professional memoirs have been FCA’s most popular feature since his first column appeared in FCA #54, 1996. Last issue Marc shared with us the samples of his music-oriented strip, Neal Valentine. In this installment he discusses the approach he took in drawing Captain Marvel during the Golden Age … and dispels some myths along the way. —P.C. Hamerlinck.]

In the recounting of historical events, there’s this thing of “unfavorable grouping” or “inaccurate ganging” … or something like that. Not clear? Say, then, you’ve been included as a member of the human race … “as were Adolf Hitler and Ivan the Terrible.” See what I mean? Why not nice guys like George Washington and Moses? Consider the Pierce paragraph describing certain work as “notable assistance to C.C. Beck along with that of Kurt Schaffenberger and Pete Costanza.” Sounds like a warm, cozy gathering of the three, sharing thoughts and drawing “the face.” Not so. The rendering of Captain Marvel, face and figure, was under strict house control after the Captain Marvel Adventures #1 fiasco. It remained so until the final days of 1942, by which time Beck had assembled a nucleus for his shop to be … and likely to a great extent, thereafter. It’s difficult to understand how the aforementioned “assistance” occurred during that period. Costanza was there, though rarely called upon beyond layouts and inking, and Kurt, according to accounts, had gone directly from Pratt schooldays to the Binder shop, thence to the army. I drew one face only, the face that along with my résumé had satisfied Fawcett Publications. It was identical, I’ve always thought, to the one being drawn by its originator, C.C. Beck.

he question was about hero worship: “When you’re in a music store, whose recordings do you look for?” I like the immediate reply of legendary jazz trombonist Carl Fontana: “My own!”

Quite similar was that of Pete Costanza, legendary friend and assistant of C.C. Beck, co-creator of Captain Marvel. Pete, when asked which comic books he read, answered, “I’ve never read comic books … except the stories containing my work.” It was a matter of self-criticism: “I did the work yesterday, but let’s see what it looks … or sounds like … today!” Today’s review might reveal some little bad things about it … some lessons to be learned … that escaped us yesterday. And, to be honest, there was always the morsel of personal satisfaction that comes from hearing again the old choruses … or seeing the old pages … that featured your own endeavors. It was on just such a mental excursion that I ran across a piece prepared a while back by comic book fan/historian John Pierce … “The Many Faces of Captain Marvel” (FCA/SOB #18 (FCA #29), March-April ’83). I had no idea there had been so many “faces” … or so many artists involved! And for so many years … even extending beyond our

Critic’s Choice In this panel from Mary Marvel’s origin story in Captain Marvel Adventures #18 (Dec. 1942), does Cap looks especially “barrel-chested,” “beefy,” or “[not] quite as tall as he should have”? Marc is glad his Fawcett employers didn’t think so in 1942! Repro’d from the 1977 book Shazam! from the 40’s to the 70’s. [©2007 DC Comics.]

We Didn’t Know... It Was The Golden Age

Was Captain Marvel Two-Faced? Above left, the World’s Mightiest Mortal looks surprised at the antics of Mr. Mind (a detail from the cover of Captain Marvel Adventures #39, Sept. 1944, drawn by C.C. Beck). At right is the same guy, confident and determined as he joins forces with World War II G.I.s (detail from the cover of CMA #12, June ’42, drawn by Marc Swayze). [Captain Marvel TM & ©2007 DC Comics.]

I’m confident Beck thought so, too. In the discussions we had during our chummy days the topic was not “faces,” but that “one face” … and the many expressions that face might wear. That was our interest … the emotions reflected on that face. Not the constant, grim, determined countenance of the customary smasher of evil-doers, who snarled “Take that!” and “Take that!” as he swung

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mighty fists right and left … but one who might be saying, somewhat sympathetically, “Sorry I have to do this, but you deserve it!” No? Well, that’s the Captain Marvel we knew … and drew.

In Memoriam

Robert “Bob” Laughlin [1925-2006] by William Harper Edited by P.C. Hamerlinck

ithout any formal art training, Robert “Bob” Laughlin, born Sept. 18, 1925, in Englewood, NJ, pursued his childhood dream of becoming a cartoonist. His father, William, who worked in advertising, drew cartoons for fun at home… influencing his son more than any specific comic creator that Laughlin grew up reading.

Laughlin entered the Army in 1943, and while stationed at Columbia, SC, he drew “Spud Skinner,” a single-panel strip in the Fort Jackson Journal. After his discharge in 1945 he joined Fawcett Publications, where he performed various artist duties, including laying out comics content pages and ads, and doctoring editorial changes in dialogue balloons. In 1948 he decided to try freelancing for Fawcett and was given a “Tom Mix” script to draw. The work was

Fawcett Days (Above:) This photo was originally published in FCA & M.E., Too, later in P.C. Hamerlinck’s now out-of-print TwoMorrows volume Fawcett Companion. Bob Laughlin is seen at far left. (Left:) A Monte Hale Western page drawn by Bob Laughlin. Scripter unknown. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

accepted (though never published), he was hired, and from 1948-51 he produced two comic book stories monthly in Monte Hale Western, in addition to drawing filler features for other Fawcett titles such as Hot Rod Comics, Jackie Robinson, and Gabby Hayes Western. Laughlin also drew “Freddie Fumbles” in Fawcett’s Mechanix Illustrated magazine for 26 years (1953-1979). He moved from cartooning to general commercial art, working for Prentice-Hall Publishers and other companies. He also produced 22 sets of baseball cards (9 for Fleer Gum, 13 self- published). When Laughlin was assigned to Monte Hale Western at Fawcett, Carl Pfeufer, who was drawing Tom Mix Western at the time, drew a Monte Hale model sheet of head shots for Laughlin’s reference. Pfeufer’s influence is evident in Laughlin’s Hale work. Later, he assisted Pfeufer on several projects, including inking the 1952 Fawcett Movie Comic adaptation of Ten Tall Men and lettering both the Bantam Prince syndicated strip and early panels of Otto Binder’s science-fiction feature Our Space Age. During the ’50s, after the demise of Fawcett’s comics, he inked Patsy Walker and Wendy Parker covers for Timely/Marvel. Laughlin drew regular features for Dog Fancy and Cat Fancy magazines. A Laughlin-drawn poster during this period which George Gately happened to see in a pet shop window landed him a job working on the latter’s Heathcliff strip for many years. He continued to submit various comic strip ideas to syndicates in hopes of breaking into the market. One 1981 attempt later became a fan favorite: Kitz ’n’ Katz. The two zany and lyrical cats appeared in

Robert “Bob” Laughlin

Cards ’n’ Katz Bob Laughlin in a 1982 photo taken at (how did you guess?) a comics convention—flanked by a sample of one of his self-published baseball cards (1980), and the drawing he did for FCA/SOB #20 (a.k.a. FCA #31) in1984. [Art ©2007 Estate of Bob Laughlin.]

Comic Buyers Guide; later he compiled the strips into seven books. In 1984 K ’n’ K was published in comic book format by Phantasy Press, and later by Eclipse. The panel was an extension of Laughlin’s affinity for George Herriman’s Krazy Kat. When Bill & Teresa Harper began their tenure as editors/publishers of FCA, Laughlin provided the cover for their premiere issue (featuring Kitz ’n’ Katz in a humorous Western setting which reflected the publication’s new direction). Bob Laughlin died May 14, 2006, in Southbury, Connecticut, at the age of 80. He is survived by his wife of 28 years, Florence.

“A beauty of a book, a must for the growing legion of fans of an art that stands as a legitimate bridge between high and low culture.” —Toronto Star, Nov. 12, 2006.

Invaders from the North: How Canada Conquered the Comic Book Universe by John Bell $40.00 US

Available at bookstores everywhere www.dundurn.com/invaders

Emilio Squeglio Adventures–Part II The Fawcett Staff Artist Is Back—And In His Own Words! Transcribed & Edited by P.C. Hamerlinck

s detailed in our previous issue, Emilio Squeglio was a staff artist for Fawcett Publications from 1947 through 1955— working primarily, for the first several years, on Fawcett’s line of bestselling comic books. He was interviewed in depth by Jim Amash in Alter Ego #41, but here he speaks entirely for himself. Last time out, he voiced his own views on the Superman-Captain Marvel lawsuit and other such matters. This time, he talks of his post-comics work, starting with his stint on Fawcett’s other magazines—but also reminisces some more about the comics. —PCH.

True Facts After working on comics page corrections at Fawcett for more than six years, things finally came to an end in 1953. Al Allard called everybody into his office and told us the company was going to stop publishing comic books [because of the settlement of Superman-DC’s lawsuit over copyright infringement]. A lot of the guys left because they wanted to stay in comics. But, during my years there, I had gotten a taste of Fawcett’s advertising department, and it interested me. At the time I thought, “I still got a job here if I want it… it’s a nice company, nice people … why go wander the streets when I have a job here?” So I stayed briefly with Al Pauly in the advertising department. But by late ’53 I got the yearning to work on the magazines. I went up to see Al Allard and told him I’d like to try magazine work, since I’d been studying design at Pratt Institute during the evenings. Al said, “Okay, if you want to try it, I’ll put you on one of our magazines.” A few days later Al called me and said he had an opening on one of the detective magazines, True Police Cases. And that’s when I switched to magazines. I started doing page layouts, and also worked on other detective magazines—I was able to lay out an issue in just a couple of days. Al liked how I handled pictures in layouts. I also started working on some True magazine spin-offs, auto magazines, etc. One day in ’54 he asked me to go up and work on True magazine in Frank Taggart’s office. After a month working on True, Al informed me that Frank wasn’t coming back. “He’s very sick,” Al said. “He’s had a nervous breakdown. Go empty out Frank’s desk … you’re now officially on True.” I stayed with the magazine until late ‘55, working with Norman Kent, the magazine’s art editor. He was also an artist … a very art gallery-type of guy. He used to do woodcuts and linoleum cuts, and once gave me a set of cutting tools for Christmas and taught me how to do woodcuts. (I tried everything in art because I

From Super-Heroes To Sleuths (Above:) Maybe when the World’s Mightiest Mortal triumphed as usual over Dr. Sivana at the end of “The Stolen Shazam Powers” in Captain Marvel Adventures #144 (May 1953), it might’ve looked as if Cap’s fan club was getting bigger and bigger and bigger—but only half a year (and six issues) later, Cap and Fawcett comics both bit the dust. Art by C.C. Beck. [Captain Marvel TM & ©2007 DC Comics.] (Left:) Luckily, though, Emilio had a parachute! Here’s he’s seen (on left in photo) with Phil Cammerata, art editor of Fawcett’s detective magazines, in the early 1950s. It was at this time that Emilio left the advertising department and joined the magazine division. All photos in this section courtesy of Emilio.

wanted to see what I liked, which was most things… except computers!) Len Bowen was one of the editors when I started at True. He was a nice man who was much older than me. He used to visit a bar on 6th Avenue every morning before work and tank up until 9 o’clock—then he’d come into Fawcett completely stoned. Yet he always knew what he was doing, and did his best work while under the influence.

Emilio Squeglio Adventures—Part II

But I was now married, had a child on the way, and had to think long-term about my career. As much as I loved working on True, I couldn’t die there. I felt I had gone as far as I could with the company. I first broke the news to True editor Bill Kennedy. He didn’t want me to leave and tried to convince me to stay, but he understood about me wanting to further my career. “I wish you all the best, Emilio,” he said. “But remember one thing: if you don’t like those bums over there, you come back here!” Then I went up to see Al Allard. “Emilio, why do you want to leave?” Al asked, leaning back in his chair.

To Thine Own Self Be True Emilio in 1954 with John Culin, design partner for True magazine, a Fawcett publication. At right is a True cover done by another former Fawcett comics artist—Richard Deane Taylor—for the magazine’s Nov. 1956 issue, done for art director Al Allard. [Art ©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

True had beautiful illustrations, and that’s when I began meet so many great artists. The one who left the greatest impression on me was Norman Rockwell. What a gentleman he was! I was up at his place a few times. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Rockwell!” I said when I first shook his hand. “Emilio … please … Mr. Rockwell was my dad. I’m Norman! Would you like to see my studio?” In his studio I saw all the original paintings he did for the Saturday Evening Post. I had lunch in his kitchen with him and his wife.

“I don’t,” I said, “but it would further my career. American Artist is a good magazine. I love the art field and I’d be closer to the business and to the artists.”

“Okay,” Al replied, “I’m not going to try to convince you to stay, but remember: if they as much raise an eyebrow with anything you’re doing or treat you bad, then you tell them to go to hell and come back here. You’ll always have a job here.” I thought it was wonderful for him to say that. I always respected Al as being a fair and honest guy. On my last day at Fawcett, Bill Kennedy said to me, “Look, in

One day at work, Norman Kent came in and told me that he had just been let go from True. A few weeks after Norman had left, I got a call from him asking if we could have lunch together.

American Artist During lunch, Norman Kent told me he was taking over editorship of American Artist magazine: “I need an art director, and I’d like you to come over with me.” So here I was, associate art editor of True, one of the best magazines in the business, and he asks me to be the art director at American Artist. It was like a whirlwind. I thought about it for maybe five minutes and then said, “Okay!” I gave Fawcett a two-week notice. I hated to leave them, because Fawcett was an absolute dream company to work for. The Fawcetts were just plain wonderful with their birthday cards, Christmas bonuses, and everything … and all their employees were wonderful, too, so it wasn’t easy for me to leave.

From One American Artist To Another The cover of the Jan. 1961 issue of American Artist, the sixth “Annual Buyer’s Guide” issue, as designed by Emilio. The July 1955 photo of Emilio at right, taken when he joined that magazine, was used therein to introduce him to readers as its new art director. [Art ©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

The Fawcett Staff Artist Is Back

Hogarth Muscles In Pages from the first edition of Burne Hogarth’s book Dynamic Anatomy, designed by Emilio Squeglio. It won an award as one of 1958’s best books. Hogarth, of course, was famous both for his anatomy texts (and related classes that he taught) and for drawing the Tarzan Sunday newspaper comic strip from the late 1930s through the 1940s. In the center of this page is a panel from the strip for Sept. 7, 1947. [Book cover ©2007 the respective copyright holders; Tarzan TM & ©2007 Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.]

about a week or so, I’m gonna give you a call. Be ready to come over to the 13th floor—you’ll find out why when I call you!” So I left Fawcett and started working at American Artist. A couple of weeks had gone by when I got a call from Bill: “Emilio, what are you doing Friday night after work?” “I’m going home” I said. “No you’re not!” he said. “You’re coming over here. We’re going to give you a party!” Fawcett threw great parties all the time. I went over there and they had the biggest party you ever saw. I’ll never forget it … everybody was there … and it was for me! “What’s going on?” I asked. “Well, we didn’t want ya to leave, ya bastard!” Bill said. “We were hoping to convince you to come back!” Everyone was saying, “Emilio, when are ya comin’ back? We didn’t want you to go!” I almost convinced myself that night to go back to them… that’s how convincing they were!

A Designing Man (Above:) Emilio in his office at Reinhold Publishing Corp., circa the mid-1960s. He was senior designer of the trade books department, with a staff of six book designers. (Right:) Emilio at Reinhold, having a chat with one of his assistants after a morning staff meeting in 1965.

The same year I had started at Fawcett, in ’47, I began to take design courses at night at Pratt Institute for about four years. When I went to American Artist and found out I was going to be designing books, I went to NYU and spent two years there studying design, then another year after that at Columbia University, where I studied psychology because I thought it would help me understand people better. Well, after only a year of that stuff, it was bringing me down and making me talk to myself, so I said, no more.

Dynamic Anatomy I designed all kinds of books, including the first edition of Burne Hogarth’s Dynamic Anatomy. I think it’s the nicest book I ever designed. It was published in 1958 and awarded one of the best 50 books of that year by the American Institute of Graphic Arts. They would select fifty of the best commercially-designed books in the U.S. and put them into a show. (Besides Dynamic Anatomy, I actually had another among the 50 best-designed books, Robert Fawcett on the Art of Drawing, but it was stolen from me by Eugene Ettenberg. I designed the book but he got the credit for it.) Those fifty books that year went over to Russia on the government’s Cultural Exchange Program. I’m very proud of that and of Dynamic Anatomy. Burne was a special friend of mine, and we became closer friends after the book was published. He loved how I designed it, by giving it a lot of complementary space which projected his artwork.

Fawcett City [Thinking back on his days at Fawcett:] We all got along at Fawcett. I clearly remember always being happy there, and so was

Emilio Squeglio Adventures—Part II

Do Not Forsake Me, Oh, My Darlin’ Fawcett! (Left & center:) Emilio once shared an elevator with the Western (and singing—remember the theme in High Noon?) star seen here on the photo cover of Tex Ritter Western #8 (Dec. 1951)—and socking a renegade Injun in #3 (Feb. 1951). (Right:) Was there ever a more unlikely star of a

everybody else. I never saw anybody with Movie Stars, Modeling, cowboy comic than the bearded, grizzled, mushany grudges. I never heard any arguments. mouthed movie sidekick pictured on the cover of & Mishaps There was never any kind of back-biting or Gabby Hayes Western #9 (Aug. 1949)? Yet George anything like that. I couldn’t wait to get to “Gabby” Hayes’ title lasted till the very end at I’ll never forget: one day I walked into work in the morning the whole time I was Fawcett… then went on for a little while longer at the elevator and there was this big guy there! And when I arrived at the offices I Charlton and Toby! [Photos & art ©2007 the wearing a cowboy hat, and he had a big beer respective copyright holders.] never saw anyone wasting time. Everyone belly on him. I wondered, “Is that Tex was always hard at work, and consumed with Ritter?” So I introduced myself, and sure what they were doing. I’d attribute this to the Fawcett brothers, who enough it was him. We chatted all the way down to the first floor. I saw employed hard-working people like themselves. Everybody liked each him again one other time after that. I also met the wonderful Gabby other and had a happy-go-lucky attitude. Hayes. He was a very short, thin, pleasant guy with false teeth and a nicely trimmed beard. I asked him how he liked his comic book that The Fawcetts were nice and treated us well. If you met Roger Fawcett published. “I like ’em!” he said. “You people do a good job!” Fawcett in the hallway, he wasn’t the kind of man that would just pass you by with a simple “Good morning” or “Good afternoon”; he would stop, shake your hand, ask how you were doing, and have a conversation with you… he would do this all the time and with everyone. All of the brothers were like that. William Fawcett was the president. His brothers (along with Ralph Daigh, who stayed in his office most of the time, and Al Allard, who was also up there with them in the executive suites) used to call him “Buzz.” He was on the road most of the time, so he would only be in the office once or twice a week. Gordon (in charge of finances) and Roscoe (circulation manager) would come in once in a while, otherwise they would be traveling or be at the Greenwich, Connecticut, office. But Roger, the VP, was there every single day and was the main Fawcett that kept us all together. He was a nice man. Roger and the secretary would laugh all the time. The Fawcetts were fun people and they enjoyed parties. Roger used to cut up at the parties. He would dance with everybody. You don’t get executives doing that anymore. He sat with his employees at the parties. All the executives would be scattered among us. Al Allard would always make a grand entrance. At a party at the Greenwich Country Club, he’d come down the road in his big Buick convertible. He’s be wearing a long white silk scarf around his neck flapping in the breeze and a captain’s cap on top of his long hair. He’d stand up on the seat waving to everybody. Gil Paust, features editor for Mechanix Illustrated, would take people up in his airplane. Those parties up in Greenwich were unbelievable. They rented out the whole club for the entire day. Anything you wanted was there. It was wonderful. I was lucky to have started in a company like that.

It was a common thing for me to meet many movie stars that came into our offices to have new photos taken at our photo studio for Fawcett’s motion picture magazines. I met a lot of stars … Vincent Price, Rock Hudson, Frank Sinatra … some were nice, some were not. At the coffee shop next door to Fawcett, I had lunch every day for a while with Lorne Greene, whom I met there several times before he headed out West to star in Bonanza. We always sat next to each other in the same two seats and ordered hamburgers. Fawcett’s big photo studio took up the whole 4th floor. They used to pull me in sometimes to do some modeling. Phil Cammerata, editor of Fawcett’s detective magazines, would pick out major crimes from the news and re-create the crime scenes using some of us in the company as models for the photos. They’d dress me up as a gangster by putting a coat and hat on me and a cigar in my mouth. I also posed as a butcher, a bartender, and everything else. One time at the end of the workday I was walking past the hotel located next to the Fawcett offices on 44th Street. Suddenly, right behind me, I heard something hit the ground. A window washer had fallen to his death just five feet behind me! When I got home, I found blood on the back of my coat.

Fawcett Frolics My career started so well. A lot of fellows tell me their stories about walking the streets with their portfolios. I didn’t have that problem, thanks to Chic Stone. He did a lot for me. I know later Chic was angry

The Fawcett Staff Artist Is Back

that his job wasn’t waiting for him at Fawcett after he returned from the war. But, during World War II, Al Allard implemented a new company policy to use mostly freelance artists and writers as opposed to putting people on staff … because when you have 6-8 people on staff, you can only push them so much. But if you use freelance people you could have 16 of them and have much more work produced for the same price than you would pay a staff plus their benefits. That’s why there were so many people who worked on “Captain Marvel” and Fawcett’s comics. It seemed like everybody and their brothers were working on the Captain. Chic may have been mad at Fawcett, but he really did like it there. Otherwise why would he have tried to get his old staff position back after the War? He became disgruntled that Fawcett had changed things, but the War changed a lot of things. I tried to explain that to him once, but he didn’t seem to understand. Even if he would have gotten his job back, Chic wouldn’t have been able to have a staff position, and by ’53 Fawcett’s comics were gone anyway. The company itself was in danger of going out of business, had the court action continued on. Roscoe Fawcett was instrumental in pulling the plug on the comics and convinced his brothers that they were just throwing money down a bottomless pit and that the whole thing was going to ruin the entire company. I remember Roscoe came and talked to us after we heard about the fate of the comics. He told us the lawsuit was draining the company dry, even with Captain Marvel Adventures still selling over a million a month, and he produced the figures to prove it. He was sorry that the company had to cease publishing comics, and all the Fawcett brothers were heartsick about losing people. Employees were rarely fired from Fawcett. If someone left, they left on their own and were sent off with hardy congratulations. Everybody I know who left there had left on good terms. I know I did. And to give me a party after I had left? They had kept the 13th floor reserved for parties only, and Roger Fawcett always pulled a lot of funny gags at these gatherings. He was always right in the middle of things, unloosening his tie and getting right down with us! That was nice. You had a sense of security with a company like that.

serious eyesight problems and may be blind by now. He was living in North Port, Long Island. Al Jetter is a guy I worked with for many years on the comics. He began as a letterer and later became one of the comics editors. I heard from him just a few of years ago, right after his wife Charolette had passed away. He was going into a nursing home. He was a fun, likable guy, and he was a great letterer. Both he and his wife did lettering and did a lot of work for Fawcett. I remember back in ’47 when we were putting the finishing touches on the comics and they were always loaded down with stuff, constantly coming in and out. He tried to commit suicide about five years ago; he had terminal cancer. Al passed away recently. Kay Woods was one of comics editors at Fawcett whom I knew very well. She was such a doll and a lot of fun. About ten years ago she was working at Bloomingdale’s and we got re-connected via my niece, who was also working there at the time. Kay and I had a long chat, and she also gave me the number of another former Fawcett female editor, Edna Hagen. I called Edna down in Florida, but she wasn’t too receptive and didn’t want much to do with the past. I called Kay to tell her what had happened and she said: “Well, you know, Edna was always grumpy anyway!” Kay apparently left Bloomingdale’s some time ago and I’ve lost contact with her again. Our chief editor Will Lieberson was a joy, a great guy, a clown, and easy to talk to. Will was always walking around the comic department. He would look over all the comic pages and make corrections. He was kind, patient, and gave positive feedback— but was quick to point out when something was done wrong. [NOTE: A feature on Will Lieberson was printed in A/E #21.] Wendell Crowley was such a gentleman. He married Dagny West, who also worked at Fawcett. She was a sweetheart. I remember something was wrong with her arm because of some affliction she suffered. You should’ve seen those two together; it was unbelievable because Wendell was so tall and she was so short, but they loved each other very much. They had to put Wendell’s desk up on 2x4s so he could get his legs under it. Seeing that picture in FCA #100 of P.C. Hamerlinck standing next to Roscoe Fawcett reminded me of how Wendell used to tower over everybody! Wendell would

Fawcett Friends I had a little chat with Ginny Provisiero recently and we had a ball catching up. We remembered most of the same people from Fawcett. But what she really remembered were all those office parties! She was an excellent editor and she was cute. I used to have a crush on her when I first started at Fawcett. We were always good friends. [NOTE: See the photo-laden interview with Fawcett editor Ginny Provisiero in A/E, Vol. 3, #3, in which a number of those mentioned in the rest of this article were depicted. Also see photo on p. 78.] Len Leone was another who worked in Fawcett’s comics department. He was there before me, but he left shortly after I got there. He went over to Bantam Books to become their art director. I haven’t seen Lenny in many years. He’s in his 80s now but has had

The Captain’s Courageous Emilio says, “It seemed like everybody and their brothers were working on the Captain”—including him, from 1947-53! And he’s still at it, as witness this 2005 drawing. It was executed at the drawing table he kept from his comic book time at Fawcett, “which I still have till this day.” Above is a photo of Emilio in the 1980s, when he was freelancing book design, which lasted till he retired in 1990. [Captain Marvel TM & ©2007 DC Comics.]

Emilio Squeglio Adventures—Part II

throw paper airplanes out of the window during St. Patrick’s Day parades and had a very dry sense of humor. He was stern when it came to editing, because comics were important to him … they were the love of his life and he loved Captain Marvel. It broke his heart when the comics died. [NOTE: A photo of Wendell Crowley—and ones of Otto Binder and C.C. Beck—appeared in our previous issue. And see p. 78.] I didn’t really get to know Otto and Jack Binder too well. I didn’t see them that often because they were quickly in and out a lot, like Bud Thompson and all the other freelancers. I didn’t know Bill Parker that well, either. He was a shy man who made himself scarce as the editor of Mechanix Illustrated.

Captain’s Cast The Family Way Emilio in his office at Fawcett, 1952—a year before the axe fell on Captain Marvel and his Family—surrounded by a trio of his 2005 drawings of heroes he didn’t like as well as Cap: Mary (“okay, I suppose”)… Uncle Marvel (“a pain in the neck”)… and Captain Marvel Jr. (Raboy’s “beautifully drawn” art “just didn’t have a relaxed look to it”). We can understand all those judgments, Emilio— but, not like Mr. Mind and Mr. Tawny!? [Characters TM & ©2007 DC Comics.]

Pete Costanza would come in once in a while, but I wouldn’t see him that much. C.C. was actually the one that would come in, at least a couple times a week, from their studio in Englewood, New Jersey. When Pete would come in, he usually went straight to Will’s office for a meeting. Pete was sometimes grumpy, but usually he was okay. He was very studious about his work. [NOTE: A caricature of Pete Costanza was seen in A/E #61, from his American Comics Group days.] Since C.C. Beck came into our offices pretty often, he’d always keep a close eye on things. If you stopped him in the hallway and talked to him, he would stay with you for hours, even though he was always in a hurry and had to get back to his studio. Towards the end of the comics when he saw that things were going bad, he would sometimes get a little feisty, but we all understood. He was losing something that he loved very much, as we all were. But he was always a pleasant man. He was a true, real cartoonist. While he could be serious at times, C.C. could always make you smile and laugh at his drawings. He was an excellent draftsman. Today he might be called old-fashioned, but his way was the right way.

Out of all the “Captain Marvel” characters, I hated that damn bug [Mr. Mind] the most … and I didn’t like that tiger [Mr. Tawny] they had, either. Uncle Marvel was a pain in the neck, too. Mary was okay, I suppose, but there were too many versions of her. I never worked on any of the “Captain Marvel Jr.” stories, which were in a completely different style: Raboy’s. Mac had been such a particular and grumpy SOB. His style was strictly illustration and, while beautifully drawn, his stuff always looked a little stiff to me. His “Captain Marvel Jr.” just didn’t have a relaxed look to it. Marc Swayze’s illustrative style was looser than Mac’s and more akin to C.C.’s. Fawcett could have killed all of those secondary characters, because they didn’t carry too much. But I didn’t mind drawing them, and I still draw all of them for people. But I’ll always love drawing Captain Marvel the most.

Breakfast Serials The Adventures of Captain Marvel 1941 serial is awful. Tom Tyler cast as Captain Marvel was a big flop. That pair of longjohns they had him in looked terrible, and that tiny little thunderbolt thing on his chest was ugly. Tyler brought nothing to the character whatsoever. And then they had Billy Batson as a 30-year-old reporter dressed in a suit, tie and fedora! It was pretty bad, and Fawcett had nothing to do with the thing. On the other hand, I liked Jackson Bostwick’s portrayal of Captain Marvel on the Shazam! TV series from the ’70s. It was very well done and he did a beautiful job. I feel he was as close as you can get to Bill Parker and C.C. Beck’s original version of Captain Marvel. When Bostwick portrayed Captain Marvel, he looked right, he did it right, and it felt right. He was very believable as the character. Michael Gray looked good as Billy, too. But why would they want to get rid of Bostwick? The other guy who replaced him as Captain Marvel, that guy Davey—he just spoiled everything. He looked like a gangster or a hit man. He just wasn’t right and looked out of place. The technical aspects were kind-of lousy, but I still love the series. I’m waiting for the Captain Marvel movie. Hopefully it will be done the right way and not with all that nonsense some Hollywood people like to pull. And I hope they get somebody who looks like him.

The Modern World To me, comic books (and comic strips) were meant to be laughed at and enjoyed by children. Today’s “comics” are far from being comic, and I know a lot of fellows from my time feel the same way. They’re

The Fawcett Staff Artist Is Back

We Been Talkin’ About Jackson (Far left:) As a fan of the 1970s Shazam! TV series, Emilio paid tribute to Jackson Bostwick’s portrayal of the Big Red Cheese in this 2005 color drawing, based on the photo that appeared on a DC tabloid at the time. (Center:) This 2005 illustration was a gift to actor Michael Gray, TV’s Billy Batson. [Captain Marvel & Billy Batson TM & ©2007 DC Comics.]

I’ve always stayed on the light side of life, have always been friendly with people, and everything worked out well for me. From the comics and magazines to the 800-900 books I designed throughout my career, there was always one thing that remained the same: I was honest and straight with people. I stuck to that and it never let me down.

no longer cartoons, they’re “illustrations.” Some of them are paintings. And children shouldn’t be looking at pictures with so much violence. In the ’40s when kids were buying “Captain Marvel” comic books, there was never the kind of violence in them that there is today. Today’s “comics” are filled with terrible violence, killing, and extortion. I don’t like them. It’s horrible the way they portray Captain Marvel today. I have one issue where he becomes this old, demented guy. It’s terrible! He used to be a hero who was this simple, pleasantlooking drawing. Now everyone has these oversized muscles and detailed, distorted features. And Captain Marvel never used to be “difficult” and never had any fits of rage. Now they’ve got him beating the hell out of people. I just can’t understand it. I don’t know what’s going to become of these things they call “comic books.” I really don’t know how kids today could even enjoy the new ones.

Inspiration Captain Marvel launched my career. I’ll always have great admiration for the people at Fawcett: C.C. Beck, Pete Costanza, Wendell Crowley, Will Lieberson, and all the others. I’ll never forget them.

…And Many Happy Returns! Emilio Squeglio in a 2003 photo—flanked by a card he received from co-publisher Roger Fawcett on his May 19, 1952, birthday… and a photo of the “pop art painting” he did especially for FCA editor P.C. Hamerlinck. You saw a humongous detail from it on this issue’s FCA cover. [Captain Marvel TM & ©2007 DC Comics.]

As far as I’m concerned, Fawcett was the inspiration to my whole career. They gave me an insight to life … to business … to people … and to what friendship means. Here it is, nearly 60 years later, and I still remember the company and its people with good feelings. And I carried that through to all my other associations during my career. Fawcett was the epitome of what a business should be, because they were honest … honest to me … to the public … and to themselves. I worked for other companies as a freelancer and found a great deal of skullduggery, lying, and cheating. Never once did I ever felt cheated when I worked at Fawcett. I felt cared for and I felt loved by them. I had a long, colorful career, and worked for a lot of people, and nobody ever compared to Fawcett. I’m sorry that the comics had to end the way they did. The Fawcetts were Midwestern people who had feeling and compassion for others, and they appreciated everything you did. What company still sends you birthday cards? Roger Fawcett used to send one to each employee every year. They don’t do that anymore. Nowadays, companies just use up your energies and toss you out like garbage. You’re not a name or a person anymore, you’re a number. Not the case with Fawcett Publications. They were a wonderful company and I loved them very much.

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(10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION) In 1961, JERRY BAILS and ROY THOMAS launched ALTER EGO, the first fanzine devoted to comic books and their colorful history. This volume, first published in low distribution in 1997, collects the original 11 issues (published from 1961-78) of A/E, with the creative and artistic contributions of JACK KIRBY, STEVE DITKO, WALLY WOOD, JOHN BUSCEMA, MARIE SEVERIN, BILL EVERETT, RUSS MANNING, CURT SWAN, & others—and important, illustrated interviews with GIL KANE, BILL EVERETT, & JOE KUBERT! See where a generation first learned about the Golden Age of Comics—while the Silver Age was in full flower—with major articles on the JUSTICE SOCIETY, the MARVEL FAMILY, the MLJ HEROES, and more! Edited by ROY THOMAS & BILL SCHELLY with an introduction by the late JULIUS SCHWARTZ.

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GENE COLAN interview, 1940s books on comics by STAN LEE and ROBERT KANIGHER, AYERS, SEVERIN, and ROY THOMAS on Sgt. Fury, ROY on All-Star Squadron’s Golden Age roots, FCA section with SWAYZE, BECK, and WILLIAM WOOLFOLK, JOE SIMON interview, a definitive look at MAC RABOY’S work, and more! Covers by COLAN and RABOY!

Companion to ALL-STAR COMPANION book, with a JULIE SCHWARTZ interview, guide to JLA-JSA TEAMUPS, origins of the ALL-STAR SQUADRON, FCA section with MARC SWAYZE, C.C. BECK (on his 1970s DC conflicts), DAVE BERG, BOB ROGERS, more on MAC RABOY from his son, MR. MONSTER, and more! RICH BUCKLER and C.C. BECK covers!

WALLY WOOD biography, DAN ADKINS & BILL PEARSON on Wood, TOR section with 1963 JOE KUBERT interview, ROY THOMAS on creating the ALL-STAR SQUADRON and its 1940s forebears, FCA section with SWAYZE & BECK, MR. MONSTER, JERRY ORDWAY on Shazam!, JERRY DeFUCCIO on the Golden Age, CHIC STONE remembered! ADKINS and KUBERT covers!

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JAN001713

(100-page magazine) SOLD OUT (100-page Digital Edition) $2.95

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JUL002003

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: NOV002267

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: FEB012215

ALTER EGO #9

ALTER EGO #10

ALTER EGO #11

ALTER EGO #12

ALTER EGO #13

JOHN ROMITA interview by ROY THOMAS (with unseen art), Roy’s PROPOSED DREAM PROJECTS that never got published (with a host of great artists), MR. MONSTER on WAYNE BORING’S life after Superman, The Golden Age of Comic Fandom Panel, FCA section with GEORGE TUSKA, C.C. BECK, MARC SWAYZE, BILL MORRISON, & more! ROMITA and GIORDANO covers!

Who Created the Silver Age Flash? (with KANIGHER, INFANTINO, KUBERT, and SCHWARTZ), DICK AYERS interview (with unseen art), JOHN BROOME remembered, never-seen Golden Age Flash pages, VIN SULLIVAN Magazine Enterprises interview, FCA, interview with FRED GUARDINEER, and MR. MONSTER on WAYNE BORING! INFANTINO and AYERS covers!

Focuses on TIMELY/MARVEL (interviews and features on SYD SHORES, MICKEY SPILLANE, and VINCE FAGO), and MAGAZINE ENTERPRISES (including JOE CERTA, JOHN BELFI, FRANK BOLLE, BOB POWELL, and FRED MEAGHER), MR. MONSTER on JERRY SIEGEL, DON and MAGGIE THOMPSON interview, FCA with SWAYZE, BECK, and DON NEWTON!

DC and QUALITY COMICS focus! Quality’s GILL FOX interview, never-seen ’40s PAUL REINMAN Green Lantern story, ROY THOMAS talks to LEN WEIN and RICH BUCKLER about ALL-STAR SQUADRON, MR. MONSTER shows what made WALLY WOOD leave MAD, FCA section with BECK & SWAYZE, & ’65 NEWSWEEK ARTICLE on comics! REINMAN and BILL WARD covers!

1974 panel with JOE SIMON, STAN LEE, FRANK ROBBINS, and ROY THOMAS, ROY and JOHN BUSCEMA on Avengers, 1964 STAN LEE interview, tributes to DON HECK, JOHNNY CRAIG, and GRAY MORROW, Timely alums DAVID GANTZ and DANIEL KEYES, and FCA with BECK, SWAYZE, and MIKE MANLEY! Covers by MURPHY ANDERSON and JOE SIMON!

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: MAY012450

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JUL012309

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: SEP012273

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: NOV012568

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JAN022737

ALTER EGO #17 Spotlighting LOU FINE (with an overview of his career, and interviews with family members), interview with MURPHY ANDERSON about Fine, ALEX TOTH on Fine, ARNOLD DRAKE interviewed about DEADMAN and DOOM PATROL, MR. MONSTER on the non-EC work of JACK DAVIS and GEORGE EVANS, FINE and LUIS DOMINGUEZ COVERS, FCA and more!

ALTER EGO #14

ALTER EGO #15

ALTER EGO #16

A look at the 1970s JSA revival with CONWAY, LEVITZ, ESTRADA, GIFFEN, MILGROM, and STATON, JERRY ORDWAY on All-Star Squadron, tributes to CRAIG CHASE and DAN DeCARLO, “lost” 1945 issue of All-Star, 1970 interview with LEE ELIAS, MR. MONSTER on GARDNER FOX, FCA with SWAYZE, BECK, & JAY DISBROW! MIKE NASSER & MICHAEL GILBERT covers!

JOHN BUSCEMA ISSUE! BUSCEMA interview (with UNSEEN ART), reminiscences by SAL BUSCEMA, STAN LEE, INFANTINO, KUBERT, ORDWAY, FLO STEINBERG, and HERB TRIMPE, ROY THOMAS on 35 years with BIG JOHN, FCA tribute to KURT SCHAFFENBERGER, plus C.C. BECK and MARC SWAYZE, and MR. MONSTER revisits WALLY WOOD! Two BUSCEMA covers!

MARVEL BULLPEN REUNION (BUSCEMA, COLAN, ROMITA, and SEVERIN), memories of the JOHN BUSCEMA SCHOOL, FCA with ALEX ROSS, C.C. BECK, and MARC SWAYZE, tribute to CHAD GROTHKOPF, MR. MONSTER on EC COMICS with art by KURTZMAN, DAVIS, and WOOD, and more! Covers by ALEX ROSS and MARIE SEVERIN & RAMONA FRADON!

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: FEB022730

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: APR022615

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: MAY022386

ALTER EGO #18

ALTER EGO #19

ALTER EGO #20

STAN GOLDBERG interview, secrets of ’40s Timely, art by KIRBY, DITKO, ROMITA, BUSCEMA, MANEELY, EVERETT, BURGOS, and DeCARLO, spotlight on sci-fi fanzine XERO with the LUPOFFS, OTTO BINDER, DON THOMPSON, ROY THOMAS, BILL SCHELLY, and ROGER EBERT, FCA, and MR. MONSTER on WALLY WOOD ghosting Flash Gordon! KIRBY and SWAYZE covers!

Spotlight on DICK SPRANG (profile and interview) with unseen art, rare Batman art by BOB KANE, CHARLES PARIS, SHELLY MOLDOFF, MAX ALLAN COLLINS, JIM MOONEY, CARMINE INFANTINO, and ALEX TOTH, JERRY ROBINSON interviewed about Tomahawk and 1940s cover artist FRED RAY, FCA, and MR. MONSTER on WALLY WOOD’s Flash Gordon, Part 2!

Timely/Marvel art by SEKOWSKY, SHORES, EVERETT, and BURGOS, secrets behind THE INVADERS with ROY THOMAS, KIRBY, GIL KANE, & ROBBINS, BOB DESCHAMPS interviewed, 1965 NY Comics Con review, panel with FINGER, BINDER, FOX and WEISINGER, MR. MONSTER, FCA with SWAYZE, BECK, RABOY, SCHAFFENBERGER, and more! MILGROM and SCHELLY covers!

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: AUG022420

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: OCT022884

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: NOV022845

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JUL022370

ALTER EGO #21 The IGER “SHOP” examined, with art by EISNER, FINE, ANDERSON, CRANDALL, BAKER, MESKIN, CARDY, EVANS, BOB KANE, and TUSKA, “SHEENA” section with art by DAVE STEVENS & FRANK BRUNNER, ROY THOMAS on the JSA and All-Star Squadron, more UNSEEN 1946 ALL-STAR ART, MR. MONSTER on GARDNER FOX, FCA, and more! DAVE STEVENS and IRWIN HASEN covers! (108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: DEC023029

ALTER EGO #22

ALTER EGO #23

ALTER EGO #24

ALTER EGO #25

ALTER EGO #26

BILL EVERETT and JOE KUBERT interviewed by NEAL ADAMS and GIL KANE in 1970, Timely art by BURGOS, SHORES, NODELL, and SEKOWSKY, RUDY LAPICK, ROY THOMAS on Sub-Mariner, with art by EVERETT, COLAN, ANDRU, BUSCEMAs, SEVERINs, and more, FCA, MR. MONSTER on WALLY WOOD at EC, ALEX TOTH, and CAPT. MIDNIGHT! EVERETT & BECK covers!

Unseen art from TWO “LOST” 1940s H.G. PETER WONDER WOMAN STORIES (and analysis of “CHARLES MOULTON” scripts), BOB FUJITANI and JOHN ROSENBERGER, VICTOR GORELICK discusses Archie and The Mighty Crusaders, with art by MORROW, BUCKLER, and REINMAN, FCA, and MR. MONSTER on WALLY WOOD! H.G. PETER and BOB FUJITANI covers!

X-MEN interviews with STAN LEE, DAVE COCKRUM, CHRIS CLAREMONT, ARNOLD DRAKE, JIM SHOOTER, ROY THOMAS, and LEN WEIN, MORT MESKIN profiled by his sons and ALEX TOTH, rare art by JERRY ROBINSON, FCA with BECK, SWAYZE, and WILLIAM WOOLFOLK, MR. MONSTER, and BILL SCHELLY on Comics Fandom! MESKIN and COCKRUM covers!

JACK COLE remembered by ALEX TOTH, interview with brother DICK COLE and his PLAYBOY colleagues, CHRIS CLAREMONT on the X-Men (with more never-seen art by DAVE COCKRUM), ROY THOMAS on All-Star Squadron #1 and its ’40s roots (with art by ORDWAY, BUCKLER, MESKIN and MOLDOFF), FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more! Covers by TOTH and SCHELLY!

JOE SINNOTT interview, IRWIN DONENFELD interview by EVANIER & SCHWARTZ, art by SHUSTER, INFANTINO, ANDERSON, and SWAN, MARK WAID analyzes the first Kryptonite story, JERRY SIEGEL and HARRY DONENFELD, JERRY IGER Shop update, ALEX TOTH, MR. MONSTER, and FCA with SWAYZE, BECK, and KEN BALD! Covers by SINNOTT and WAYNE BORING!

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JAN032492

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: FEB032260

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: MAR032534

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: APR032553

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: MAY032543

ALTER EGO #27

ALTER EGO #28

ALTER EGO #29

ALTER EGO #30

ALTER EGO #31

VIN SULLIVAN interview about the early DC days with art by SHUSTER, MOLDOFF, FLESSEL, GUARDINEER, and BURNLEY, MR. MONSTER’s “Lost” KIRBY HULK covers, 1948 NEW YORK COMIC CON with STAN LEE, SIMON & KIRBY, JULIUS SCHWARTZ, HARVEY KURTZMAN, and ROY THOMAS, ALEX TOTH, FCA, and more! Covers by JACK BURNLEY and JACK KIRBY!

Spotlight on JOE MANEELY, with a career overview, remembrance by his daughter and tons of art, Timely/Atlas/Marvel art by ROMITA, EVERETT, SEVERIN, SHORES, KIRBY, and DITKO, STAN LEE on Maneely, LEE AMES interview, FCA with SWAYZE, ISIS, and STEVE SKEATES, MR. MONSTER, BILL SCHELLY, and more! Covers by JOE MANEELY and DON NEWTON!

FRANK BRUNNER interview, BILL EVERETT’S Venus examined by TRINA ROBBINS, Classics Illustrated “What ifs”, LEE/KIRBY/DITKO Marvel prototypes, JOE MANEELY’s monsters, BILL FRACCIO interview, ALEX TOTH, MR. MONSTER, JOHN BENSON on EC, The Heap by ERNIE SCHROEDER, and FCA! Covers by FRANK BRUNNER and PETE VON SHOLLY!

ALEX ROSS on his love for the JLA, BLACKHAWK/JLA artist DICK DILLIN, the super-heroes of 1940s-1980s France (with art by STEVE RUDE, STEVE BISSETTE, LADRÖNN, and NEAL ADAMS), KIM AAMODT & WALTER GEIER on writing for SIMON & KIRBY, ALEX TOTH, MR. MONSTER, and FCA! Covers by ALEX ROSS and STEVE RUDE!

DICK AYERS on his 1950s and ’60s work (with tons of Marvel Bullpen art), HARLAN ELLISON’s Marvel Age work examined (with art by BUCKLER, SAL BUSCEMA, and TRIMPE), STAN LEE’S Marvel Prototypes (with art by KIRBY and DITKO), Christmas cards from comics greats, MR. MONSTER, & FCA with SWAYZE and SCHAFFENBERGER! Covers by DICK AYERS and FRED RAY!

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JUN032614

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JUL032570

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: AUG032604

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: SEP032620

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: OCT032843

ALTER EGO #32

ALTER EGO #33

ALTER EGO #34

ALTER EGO #35

ALTER EGO #36

Timely artists ALLEN BELLMAN and SAM BURLOCKOFF interviewed, MART NODELL on his Timely years, rare art by BURGOS, EVERETT, and SHORES, MIKE GOLD on the Silver Age (with art by SIMON & KIRBY, SWAN, INFANTINO, KANE, and more), FCA, ALEX TOTH, BILL SCHELLY on comics fandom, and more! Covers by DICK GIORDANO and GIL KANE!

Symposium on MIKE SEKOWSKY by MARK EVANIER, SCOTT SHAW!, et al., with art by ANDERSON, INFANTINO, and others, PAT (MRS. MIKE) SEKOWSKY and inker VALERIE BARCLAY interviewed, FCA, 1950s Captain Marvel parody by ANDRU and ESPOSITO, ALEX TOTH, BILL SCHELLY, MR. MONSTER, and more! Covers by FRENZ/SINNOTT and FRENZ/BUSCEMA!

Quality Comics interviews with ALEX KOTZKY, AL GRENET, CHUCK CUIDERA, & DICK ARNOLD (son of BUSY ARNOLD), art by COLE, EISNER, FINE, WARD, DILLIN, and KANE, MICHELLE NOLAN on Blackhawk’s jump to DC, FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT on HARVEY KURTZMAN, & ALEX TOTH on REED CRANDALL! Covers by REED CRANDALL & CHARLES NICHOLAS!

Covers by JOHN ROMITA and AL JAFFEE! LEE, ROMITA, AYERS, HEATH, & THOMAS on the 1953-55 Timely super-hero revival, with rare art by ROMITA, AYERS, BURGOS, HEATH, EVERETT, LAWRENCE, & POWELL, AL JAFFEE on the 1940s Timely Bullpen (and MAD), FCA, ALEX TOTH on comic art, MR. MONSTER on unpublished 1950s covers, and more!

JOE SIMON on SIMON & KIRBY, CARL BURGOS, and LLOYD JACQUET, JOHN BELL on World War II Canadian heroes, MICHAEL T. GILBERT on Canadian origins of MR. MONSTER, tributes to BOB DESCHAMPS, DON LAWRENCE, & GEORGE WOODBRIDGE, FCA, ALEX TOTH, and ELMER WEXLER interview! Covers by SIMON and GILBERT & RONN SUTTON!

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: NOV032695

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: DEC032833

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JAN042879

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: FEB042796

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: MAR042972

ALTER EGO #37

ALTER EGO #38

ALTER EGO #39

ALTER EGO #40

ALTER EGO #41

WILL MURRAY on the 1940 Superman “KMetal” story & PHILIP WYLIE’s GLADIATOR (with art by SHUSTER, SWAN, ADAMS, and BORING), FCA with BECK, SWAYZE, and DON NEWTON, SY BARRY interview, art by TOTH, MESKIN, INFANTINO, and ANDERSON, and MICHAEL T. GILBERT interviews AL FELDSTEIN on EC and RAY BRADBURY! Covers by C.C. BECK and WAYNE BORING!

JULIE SCHWARTZ TRIBUTE with HARLAN ELLISON, INFANTINO, ANDERSON, TOTH, KUBERT, GIELLA, GIORDANO, CARDY, LEVITZ, STAN LEE, WOLFMAN, EVANIER, & ROY THOMAS, never-seen interviews with Julie, FCA with BECK, SCHAFFENBERGER, NEWTON, COCKRUM, OKSNER, FRADON, SWAYZE, and JACKSON BOSTWICK! Covers by INFANTINO and IRWIN HASEN!

Full-issue spotlight on JERRY ROBINSON, with an interview on being BOB KANE’s Batman “ghost”, creating the JOKER and ROBIN, working on VIGILANTE, GREEN HORNET, and ATOMAN, plus never-seen art by Jerry, MESKIN, ROUSSOS, RAY, KIRBY, SPRANG, DITKO, and PARIS! Plus FCA, MR. MONSTER on AL FELDSTEIN Part 2, and more! Two JERRY ROBINSON covers!

RUSS HEATH and GIL KANE interviews (with tons of unseen art), the JULIE SCHWARTZ Memorial Service with ELLISON, MOORE, GAIMAN, HASEN, O’NEIL, and LEVITZ, art by INFANTINO, ANDERSON, TOTH, NOVICK, DILLIN, SEKOWSKY, KUBERT, GIELLA, ARAGONÉS, FCA, MR. MONSTER and AL FELDSTEIN Part 3, and more! Covers by GIL KANE & RUSS HEATH!

Halloween issue! BERNIE WRIGHTSON on his 1970s FRANKENSTEIN, DICK BRIEFER’S monster, the campy 1960s Frankie, art by KALUTA, BAILY, MANEELY, PLOOG, KUBERT, BRUNNER, BORING, OKSNER, TUSKA, CRANDALL, and SUTTON, FCA #100, EMILIO SQUEGLIO interview, ALEX TOTH, MICHAEL T. GILBERT, and more! Covers by WRIGHTSON & MARC SWAYZE!

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: APR043055

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: MAY043050

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JUN042972

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JUL043386

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: AUG043186

ALTER EGO #42

ALTER EGO #43

ALTER EGO #44

ALTER EGO #45

ALTER EGO #46

A celebration of DON HECK, WERNER ROTH, and PAUL REINMAN, rare art by KIRBY, DITKO, and AYERS, Hillman and Ziff-Davis remembered by Heap artist ERNIE SCHROEDER, HERB ROGOFF, and WALTER LITTMAN, FCA with MARC SWAYZE, MR. MONSTER, BILL SCHELLY, and ALEX TOTH! Covers by FASTNER & LARSON and ERNIE SCHROEDER!

Yuletide art by WOOD, SINNOTT, CARDY, BRUNNER, TOTH, NODELL, and others, interviews with Golden Age artists TOM GILL (Lone Ranger) and MORRIS WEISS, exploring 1960s Mexican comics, FCA with MARC SWAYZE and C.C. BECK, MR. MONSTER, ALEX TOTH, BILL SCHELLY on comics fandom, and more! Flip covers by GEORGE TUSKA and DAVE STEVENS!

JSA/All-Star Squadron/Infinity Inc. special! Interviews with KUBERT, HASEN, ANDERSON, ORDWAY, BUCKLER, THOMAS, 1940s Atom writer ARTHUR ADLER, art by TOTH, SEKOWSKY, HASEN, MACHLAN, OKSNER, and INFANTINO, FCA, and MR. MONSTER’S “I Like Ike!” cartoons by BOB KANE, INFANTINO, OKSNER, and BIRO! Wraparound ORDWAY cover!

Interviews with Sandman artist CREIG FLESSEL and ’40s creator BERT CHRISTMAN, MICHAEL CHABON on researching his Pulitzer-winning novel Kavalier & Clay, art by EISNER, KANE, KIRBY, and AYERS, FCA with MARC SWAYZE and C.C. BECK, OTTO BINDER’s “lost” Jon Jarl story, MR. MONSTER, BILL SCHELLY on comics fandom, and ALEX TOTH! CREIG FLESSEL cover!

The VERY BEST of the 1960s-70s ALTER EGO! 1969 BILL EVERETT interview, art by BURGOS, GUSTAVSON, SIMON & KIRBY, and others, 1960s gems by DITKO, E. NELSON BRIDWELL, JERRY BAILS, and ROY THOMAS, LOU GLANZMAN interview, tributes to IRV NOVICK and CHRIS REEVE, MR. MONSTER, FCA, TOTH, and more! Cover by EVERETT and MARIE SEVERIN!

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: SEP043043

(108-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: OCT043189

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: NOV043080

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: DEC042992

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JAN053133

ALTER EGO #47

ALTER EGO #48

ALTER EGO #49

Spotlights MATT BAKER, Golden Age cheesecake artist of PHANTOM LADY! Career overview, interviews with BAKER’s half-brother and nephew, art from AL FELDSTEIN, VINCE COLLETTA, ARTHUR PEDDY, JACK KAMEN and others, FCA, BILL SCHELLY talks to comic-book-seller (and fan) BUD PLANT, MR. MONSTER on missing AL WILLIAMSON art, and ALEX TOTH!

WILL EISNER discusses Eisner & Iger’s Shop and BUSY ARNOLD’s ’40s Quality Comics, art by FINE, CRANDALL, COLE, POWELL, and CARDY, EISNER tributes by STAN LEE, GENE COLAN, & others, interviews with ’40s Quality artist VERN HENKEL and CHUCK MAZOUJIAN, FCA, MR. MONSTER on EISNER’s Wonder Man, ALEX TOTH, and more with BUD PLANT! EISNER cover!

Spotlights CARL BURGOS! Interview with daughter SUE BURGOS, art by BURGOS, BILL EVERETT, MIKE SEKOWSKY, ED ASCHE, and DICK AYERS, unused 1941 Timely cover layouts, the 1957 Atlas Implosion examined, MANNY STALLMAN, FCA, MR. MONSTER and more! New cover by MARK SPARACIO, from an unused 1941 layout by CARL BURGOS!

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: FEB053220

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: MAR053331

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: APR053287

ALTER EGO #50 ROY THOMAS covers his 40-YEAR career in comics (AVENGERS, X-MEN, CONAN, ALL-STAR SQUADRON, INFINITY INC.), with ADAMS, BUSCEMA, COLAN, DITKO, GIL KANE, KIRBY, STAN LEE, ORDWAY, PÉREZ, ROMITA, and many others! Also FCA, & MR. MONSTER on ROY’s letters to GARDNER FOX! Flip-covers by BUSCEMA/ KIRBY/ALCALA and JERRY ORDWAY!

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: MAY053172

ALTER EGO #54 ALTER EGO #51

ALTER EGO #52

ALTER EGO #53

Golden Age Batman artist/BOB KANE ghost LEW SAYRE SCHWARTZ interviewed, Batman art by JERRY ROBINSON, DICK SPRANG, SHELDON MOLDOFF, WIN MORTIMER, JIM MOONEY, and others, the Golden and Silver Ages of AUSTRALIAN SUPER-HEROES, Mad artist DAVE BERG interviewed, FCA, MR. MONSTER on WILL EISNER, BILL SCHELLY, and more!

JOE GIELLA on the Silver Age at DC, the Golden Age at Marvel, and JULIE SCHWARTZ, with rare art by INFANTINO, GIL KANE, SEKOWSKY, SWAN, DILLIN, MOLDOFF, GIACOIA, SCHAFFENBERGER, and others, JAY SCOTT PIKE on STAN LEE and CHARLES BIRO, MARTIN THALL interview, ALEX TOTH, MR. MONSTER, BILL SCHELLY, and more! GIELLA cover!

GIORDANO and THOMAS on STOKER’S DRACULA, never-seen DICK BRIEFER Frankenstein strip, MIKE ESPOSITO on his work with ROSS ANDRU, art by COLAN, WRIGHTSON, MIGNOLA, BRUNNER, BISSETTE, KALUTA, HEATH, MANEELY, EVERETT, DITKO, FCA with MARC SWAYZE, BILL SCHELLY, ALEX TOTH, and MR. MONSTER! Cover by GIORDANO!

(100-page magazine) $5.95 Diamond Order Code: JUN053345

(100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: JUL053293

(100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: AUG053328

MIKE ESPOSITO on DC and Marvel, ROBERT KANIGHER on the creation of Metal Men and Sgt. Rock (with comments by JOE KUBERT and BOB HANEY), art by ANDRU, INFANTINO, KIRBY, SEVERIN, WINDSOR-SMITH, ROMITA, BUSCEMA, TRIMPE, GIL KANE, and others, plus FCA, ALEX TOTH, BILL SCHELLY, MR. MONSTER, and more! ESPOSITO cover!

(100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: SEP053301

ALTER EGO #56

ALTER EGO #57

ALTER EGO #58

Interviews with Superman creators SIEGEL & SHUSTER, Golden/Silver Age DC production guru JACK ADLER interviewed, NEAL ADAMS and radio/TV iconoclast (and comics fan) HOWARD STERN on Adler and his amazing career, art by CURT SWAN, WAYNE BORING, and AL PLASTINO, plus FCA, MR. MONSTER, ALEX TOTH, and more! NEAL ADAMS cover!

Issue-by-issue index of Timely/Atlas superhero stories by MICHELLE NOLAN, art by SIMON & KIRBY, EVERETT, BURGOS, ROMITA, AYERS, HEATH, SEKOWSKY, SHORES, SCHOMBURG, MANEELY, and SEVERIN, GENE COLAN and ALLEN BELLMAN on 1940s Timely super-heroes, FCA, MR. MONSTER, and BILL SCHELLY! Cover by JACK KIRBY and PETE VON SHOLLY!

GERRY CONWAY and ROY THOMAS on their ’80s screenplay for “The X-Men Movie That Never Was!”with art by COCKRUM, ADAMS, BUSCEMA, BYRNE, GIL KANE, KIRBY, HECK, and LIEBER, Atlas artist VIC CARRABOTTA interview, ALLEN BELLMAN on 1940s Timely bullpen, FCA, 1966 panel on 1950s EC Comics, and MR. MONSTER! MARK SPARACIO/GIL KANE cover!

(100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: DEC053401

(100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: JAN063429

(100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: MAR063545

ALTER EGO #55 JACK and OTTO BINDER, KEN BALD, VIC DOWD, and BOB BOYAJIAN interviewed, FCA with SWAYZE and EMILIO SQUEGLIO, rare art by BECK, WARD, & SCHAFFENBERGER, Christmas Card Art from CRANDALL, SINNOTT, HEATH, MOONEY, and CARDY, 1943 Pin-Up Calendar (with ’40s movie stars as superheroines), ALEX TOTH, and more! ALEX ROSS and ALEX WRIGHT covers!

(100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: OCT053396

ALTER EGO #59 Special issue on Batman and Superman in the Golden and Silver Ages, ARTHUR SUYDAM interview, NEAL ADAMS on 1960s/70s DC, SHELLY MOLDOFF, AL PLASTINO, Golden Age artist FRAN (Doll Man) MATERA and VIC CARRABOTTA interviewed, SIEGEL & SHUSTER, RUSS MANNING, FCA, MR. MONSTER, SUYDAM cover, and more!

(100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: APR063474

ALTER EGO #60

ALTER EGO #61

ALTER EGO #62

Celebrates 50 years since SHOWCASE #4! FLASH interviews with SCHWARTZ, KANIGHER, INFANTINO, KUBERT, and BROOME, Golden Age artist TONY DiPRETA, 1966 panel with NORDLING, BINDER, and LARRY IVIE, FCA, MR. MONSTER, never-before-published color Flash cover by CARMINE INFANTINO, and more!

History of the AMERICAN COMICS GROUP (1946 to 1967)—including its roots in the Golden Age SANGOR ART SHOP and STANDARD/NEDOR comics! Art by MESKIN, ROBINSON, WILLIAMSON, FRAZETTA, SCHAFFENBERGER, & BUSCEMA, ACG writer/editor RICHARD HUGHES, plus AL HARTLEY interviewed, FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more! GIORDANO cover!

HAPPY HAUNTED HALLOWEEN ISSUE, featuring: MIKE PLOOG and RUDY PALAIS on their horror-comics work! AL WILLIAMSON on his work for the American Comics Group—plus more on ACG horror comics! Rare DICK BRIEFER Frankenstein strips! Plus FCA, MR. MONSTER, BILL SCHELLY on the 1966 KalerCon, a new PLOOG cover—and more!

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ALTER EGO #63

ALTER EGO #64

ALTER EGO #65

ALTER EGO #66

ALTER EGO #67

Tribute to ALEX TOTH! Never-before-seen interview with tons of TOTH art, including sketches he sent to friends! Articles about Toth by TERRY AUSTIN, JIM AMASH, SY BARRY, JOE KUBERT, LOU SAYRE SCHWARTZ, IRWIN HASEN, JOHN WORKMAN, and others! Plus illustrated Christmas cards by comics pros, FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more!

Fawcett Favorites! Issue-by-issue analysis of BINDER & BECK’s 1943-45 “The Monster Society of Evil!” serial, double-size FCA section with MARC SWAYZE, EMILIO SQUEGLIO, C.C. BECK, MAC RABOY, and others! Interview with MARTIN FILCHOCK, Golden Age artist for Centaur Comics! Plus MR. MONSTER, DON NEWTON cover, plus a FREE 1943 MARVEL CALENDAR!

NICK CARDY interviewed on his Golden & Silver Age work (with CARDY art), plus art by WILL EISNER, NEAL ADAMS, CARMINE INFANTINO, JIM APARO, RAMONA FRADON, CURT SWAN, MIKE SEKOWSKY, and others, tributes to ERNIE SCHROEDER and DAVE COCKRUM, FCA with MARC SWAYZE, MICHAEL T. GILBERT and MR. MONSTER, new CARDY COVER, and more!

Spotlight on BOB POWELL, the artist who drew Daredevil, Sub-Mariner, Sheena, The Avenger, The Hulk, Giant-Man, and others, plus art by WALLY WOOD, HOWARD NOSTRAND, DICK AYERS, SIMON & KIRBY, MARTIN GOODMAN’s Magazine Management, and others! FCA with MARC SWAYZE and C.C. BECK, MICHAEL T. GILBERT and MR. MONSTER, and more!

Interview with BOB OKSNER, artist of Supergirl, Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane, Angel and the Ape, Leave It to Binky, Shazam!, and more, plus art and artifacts by SHELLY MAYER, IRWIN HASEN, LEE ELIAS, C.C. BECK, CARMINE INFANTINO, GIL KANE, JULIE SCHWARTZ, etc., FCA with MARC SWAYZE & C.C. BECK, MICHAEL T. GILBERT on BOB POWELL Part II, and more!

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ALTER EGO #68

ALTER EGO #69

ALTER EGO #70

ALTER EGO #71

ALTER EGO #72

Tribute to JERRY BAILS—Father of Comics Fandom and founder of Alter Ego! Cover by GEORGE PÉREZ, plus art by JOE KUBERT, CARMINE INFANTINO, GIL KANE, DICK DILLIN, MIKE SEKOWSKY, JERRY ORDWAY, JOE STATON, JACK KIRBY, and others! Plus STEVE DITKO’s notes to STAN LEE for a 1965 Dr. Strange story! And ROY reveals secrets behind Marvel’s STAR WARS comic!

PAUL NORRIS drew AQUAMAN first, in 1941—and RAMONA FRADON was the hero’s ultimate Golden Age artist. But both drew other things as well, and both are interviewed in this landmark issue—along with a pocket history of Aquaman! Plus FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT, and more! Cover painted by JOHN WATSON, from a breathtaking illo by RAMONA FRADON!

Spotlight on ROY THOMAS’ 1970s stint as Marvel’s editor-in-chief and major writer, plus art and reminiscences of GIL KANE, BOTH BUSCEMAS, ADAMS, ROMITA, CHAYKIN, BRUNNER, PLOOG, EVERETT, WRIGHTSON, PÉREZ, ROBBINS, BARRY SMITH, STAN LEE and others, FCA, MR. MONSTER, a new GENE COLAN cover, plus an homage to artist LILY RENÉE!

Represents THE GREAT CANADIAN COMIC BOOKS, the long out-of-print 1970s book by MICHAEL HIRSH and PATRICK LOUBERT, with rare art of such heroes as Mr. Monster, Nelvana, Thunderfist, and others, plus new INVADERS art by JOHN BYRNE, MIKE GRELL, RON LIM, and more, plus a new cover by GEORGE FREEMAN, from a layout by JACK KIRBY!

SCOTT SHAW! and ROY THOMAS on the creation of Captain Carrot, art & artifacts by RICK HOBERG, STAN GOLDBERG, MIKE SEKOWSKY, JOHN COSTANZA, E. NELSON BRIDWELL, CAROL LAY, and others, interview with DICK ROCKWELL, Golden Age artist and 36-year ghost artist on MILTON CANIFF’s Steve Canyon! Plus FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more!

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ALTER EGO #73

ALTER EGO #75

ALTER EGO #76

FRANK BRUNNER on drawing Dr. Strange, interviews with CHARLES BIRO and his daughters, interview with publisher ROBERT GERSON about his 1970s horror comic Reality, art by BERNIE WRIGHTSON, GRAHAM INGELS, HOWARD CHAYKIN, MICHAEL W. KALUTA, JEFF JONES, and others FCA, MR. MONSTER, a FREE DRAW! #15! PREVIEW, and more!

FAWCETT FESTIVAL—with an ALEX ROSS cover! Double-size FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America) with P.C. HAMERLINCK on the many “Captains Marvel” over the years, unseen Shazam! proposal by ALEX ROSS, C.C. BECK on “The Death of a Legend!”, MARC SWAYZE, interview with Golden Age artist MARV LEVY, MR. MONSTER, and more!

JOE SIMON SPECIAL! In-depth SIMON interview by JIM AMASH, with neverbefore-revealed secrets behind the creation of Captain America, Fighting American, Stuntman, Adventures of The Fly, Sick magazine and more, art by JACK KIRBY, BOB POWELL, AL WILLIAMSON, JERRY GRANDENETTI, GEORGE TUSKA, and others, FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more!

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ALTER EGO #74 STAN LEE SPECIAL in honor of his 85th birthday, with a cover by JACK KIRBY, classic (and virtually unseen) interviews with Stan, tributes, and tons of rare and unseen art by KIRBY, ROMITA, the brothers BUSCEMA, DITKO, COLAN, HECK, AYERS, MANEELY, SHORES, EVERETT, BURGOS, KANE, the SEVERIN siblings—plus FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more!

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ALTER EGO #78 ALTER EGO #77 ST. JOHN ISSUE! Golden Age Tor cover by JOE KUBERT, KEN QUATTRO relates the full legend of St. John Publishing, art by KUBERT, NORMAN MAURER, MATT BAKER, LILY RENEE, BOB LUBBERS, RUBEN MOREIRA, RALPH MAYO, AL FAGO, special reminiscences of ARNOLD DRAKE, Golden Age artist TOM SAWYER interviewed, and more! (100-page magazine) $6.95 Ships May 2008

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DAVE COCKRUM TRIBUTE! Great rare XMen cover, Cockrum tributes from contemporaries and colleagues, and an interview with PATY COCKRUM on Dave’s life and legacy on The Legion of Super-Heroes, The X-Men, Star-Jammers, & more! Plus an interview with 1950s Timely/Marvel artist MARION SITTON on his own incredible career and his Golden Age contemporaries! (100-page magazine) $6.95 Ships June 2008

ALTER EGO #79

ALTER EGO #80

SUPERMAN & HIS CREATORS! New cover by MICHAEL GOLDEN, exclusive and revealing interview with JOE SHUSTER’s sister, JEAN SHUSTER PEAVEY—MIKE W. BARR on Superman the detective— DWIGHT DECKER on the Man of Steel & Hitler’s Third Reich—plus the NEMBO KID (Italian for “Superman”), art by BORING, SWAN, ADAMS, KANE, and others!

SWORD-AND-SORCERY COMICS! Learn about Crom the Barbarian, Viking Prince, Nightmaster, Kull, Red Sonja, Solomon Kane, Bran Mak Morn, Fafhrd and The Gray Mouser, Beowulf, Warlord, Dagar the Invincible, and more, with art by FRAZETTA, SMITH, BUSCEMA, KANE, WRIGHTSON, PLOOG, THORNE, BRUNNER, and more! New cover by RAFAEL KAYANAN!

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12-ISSUE SUBSCRIPTIONS: $78 US Postpaid by Media Mail ($108 First Class, $132 Canada, $180 Surface, $216 Airmail). For a 6-issue sub, cut the price in half!

THE RETRO COMICS EXPERIENCE!

Edited by MICHAEL EURY, BACK ISSUE magazine celebrates comic books of the 1970s, 1980s, and today through recurring (and rotating) departments such as “Pro2Pro” (a dialogue between two professionals), “Rough Stuff” (pencil art showcases of top artists), “Greatest Stories Never Told” (spotlighting unrealized comics series or stories), and more!

Go online for an ULTIMATE BUNDLE, with all the issues at HALF-PRICE! 6-ISSUE SUBS: $40 US Postpaid by Media Mail ($54 First Class, $66 Canada, $90 Surface, $108 Airmail).

BACK ISSUE #1

BACK ISSUE #2

BACK ISSUE #3

“PRO2PRO” interview between GEORGE PÉREZ & MARV WOLFMAN (with UNSEEN PÉREZ ART), “ROUGH STUFF” featuring JACK KIRBY’s PENCIL ART, “GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD” on the first JLA/AVENGERS, “BEYOND CAPES” on DC and Marvel’s TARZAN (with KUBERT and BUSCEMA ART), “OFF MY CHEST” editorial by INFANTINO, and more! PÉREZ cover!

“PRO2PRO” between ADAM HUGHES and MIKE W. BARR (with UNSEEN HUGHES ART) and MATT WAGNER and DIANA SCHUTZ, “ROUGH STUFF” HUGHES PENCIL ART, STEVE RUDE’s unseen SPACE GHOST/HERCULOIDS team-up, Bruce Jones’ ALIEN WORLDS and TWISTED TALES, “OFF MY CHEST” by MIKE W. BARR on the DC IMPLOSION, and more! HUGHES cover!

“PRO2PRO” between KEITH GIFFEN, J.M. DeMATTEIS and KEVIN MAGUIRE on their JLA WORK, “ROUGH STUFF” PENCIL ART by ARAGONÉS, HERNANDEZ BROS., MIGNOLA, BYRNE, KIRBY, HUGHES, details on two unknown PLASTIC MAN movies, Joker’s history with O’NEIL, ADAMS, ENGLEHART, ROGERS and BOLLAND, editorial by MARK EVANIER, and more! BOLLAND cover!

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BACK ISSUE #4

BACK ISSUE #5

BACK ISSUE #6

BACK ISSUE #7

BACK ISSUE #8

“PRO2PRO” between JOHN BYRNE and CHRIS CLAREMONT on their X-MEN WORK and WALT SIMONSON and JOE CASEY on Walter’s THOR, WOLVERINE PENCIL ART by BUSCEMA, LEE, COCKRUM, BYRNE, and GIL KANE, LEN WEIN’S TEEN WOLVERINE, PUNISHER’S 30TH and SECRET WARS’ 20TH ANNIVERSARIES (with UNSEEN ZECK ART), and more! BYRNE cover!

Wonder Woman TV series in-depth, LYNDA CARTER INTERVIEW, WONDER WOMAN TV ART GALLERY, Marvel’s TV Hulk, SpiderMan, Captain America, and Dr. Strange, LOU FERRIGNO INTERVIEW, super-hero cartoons you didn’t see, pencil gallery by JERRY ORDWAY, STAR TREK in comics, and ROMITA SR. editorial on Marvel’s movies! Covers by ALEX ROSS and ADAM HUGHES!

TOMB OF DRACULA revealed with GENE COLAN and MARV WOLFMAN, LEN WEIN & BERNIE WRIGHTSON on Swamp Thing’s roots, STEVE BISSETTE & RICK VEITCH on their Swamp work, pencil art by BRUNNER, PLOOG, BISSETTE, COLAN, WRIGHTSON, and SMITH, editorial by ROY THOMAS, PREZ, GODZILLA comics (with TRIMPE art), CHARLTON horror, & more! COLAN cover!

History of BRAVE AND BOLD, JIM APARO interview, tribute to BOB HANEY, FANTASTIC FOUR ROUNDTABLE with STAN LEE, MARK WAID, and others, EVANIER and MEUGNIOT on DNAgents, pencil art by ROSS, TOTH, COCKRUM, HECK, ROBBINS, NEWTON, and BYRNE, DENNY O’NEIL editorial, a tour of METROPOLIS, IL, and more! SWAN/ANDERSON cover!

DENNY O’NEIL and Justice League Unlimited voice actor PHIL LaMARR discuss GL JOHN STEWART, NEW X-MEN pencil art by NEAL ADAMS, ARTHUR ADAMS, DAVID MAZZUCCHELLI, ALAN DAVIS, JIM LEE, ADAM HUGHES, STORM’s 30-year history, animated TV’s black heroes (with TOTH art), ISABELLA and TREVOR VON EEDEN on BLACK LIGHTNING, and more! KYLE BAKER cover!

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BACK ISSUE #9

BACK ISSUE #10

BACK ISSUE #11

BACK ISSUE #12

BACK ISSUE #13

MIKE BARON and STEVE RUDE on NEXUS past and present, a colossal GIL KANE pencil art gallery, a look at Marvel’s STAR WARS comics, secrets of DC’s unseen CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS SEQUEL, TIM TRUMAN on his GRIMJACK SERIES, MIKE GOLD editorial, THANOS history, TIME WARP revisited, and more! All-new STEVE RUDE COVER!

NEAL ADAMS and DENNY O’NEIL on RA’S AL GHUL’s history (with Adams art), O’Neil and MICHAEL KALUTA on THE SHADOW, MIKE GRELL on JON SABLE FREELANCE, HOWIE CHAYKIN interview, DOC SAVAGE in comics, BATMAN ART GALLERY by PAUL SMITH, SIENKIEWICZ, SIMONSON, BOLLAND, HANNIGAN, MAZZUCCHELLI, and others! New cover by ADAMS!

ROY THOMAS, KURT BUSIEK, and JOE JUSKO on CONAN (with art by JOHN BUSCEMA, BARRY WINDSOR-SMITH, NEAL ADAMS, JUSKO, and others), SERGIO ARAGONÉS and MARK EVANIER on GROO, DC’s never-published KING ARTHUR, pencil art gallery by KIRBY, PÉREZ, MOEBIUS, GARCÍA-LÓPEZ, BOLLAND, and others, and a new BUSCEMA/JUSKO Conan cover!

‘70s and ‘80s character revamps with DAVE GIBBONS, ROY THOMAS and KURT BUSIEK, TOM DeFALCO and RON FRENZ on Spider-Man’s 1980s “black” costume change, DENNY O’NEIL on Superman’s 1970 revamp, JOHN BYRNE’s aborted SHAZAM! series detailed, pencil art gallery with FRANK MILLER, LEE WEEKS, DAVID MAZZUCCHELLI, CHARLES VESS, and more!

CARDY interview, ENGLEHART and MOENCH on kung-fu comics, “Pro2Pro” with STATON and CUTI on Charlton’s E-Man, pencil art gallery featuring MILLER, KUBERT, GIORDANO, SWAN, GIL KANE, COLAN, COCKRUM, and others, EISNER’s A Contract with God; “The Death of Romance (Comics)” (with art by ROMITA, SR. and TOTH), and more!

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BACK ISSUE #14

BACK ISSUE #15

BACK ISSUE #16

BACK ISSUE #17

BACK ISSUE #18

DAVE COCKRUM and MIKE GRELL go “Pro2Pro” on the Legion, pencil art gallery by BUSCEMA, BYRNE, MILLER, STARLIN, McFARLANE, ROMITA JR., SIENKIEWICZ, looks at Hercules Unbound, Hex, Killraven, Kamandi, MARS, Planet of the Apes, art and interviews with GARCÍA-LÓPEZ, KIRBY, WILLIAMSON, and more! New MIKE GRELL/BOB McLEOD cover!

“Weird Heroes” of the 1970s and ‘80s! MIKE PLOOG discusses Ghost Rider, MATT WAGNER revisits The Demon, JOE KUBERT dusts off Ragman, GENE COLAN “Rough Stuff” pencil gallery, GARCÍALÓPEZ recalls Deadman, DC’s unpublished Gorilla Grodd series, PERLIN, CONWAY, and MOENCH on Werewolf by Night, and more! New ARTHUR ADAMS cover!

“Toy Stories!” Behind the Scenes of Marvel’s G.I. JOE™ and TRANSFORMERS with PAUL LEVITZ and GEORGE TUSKA, “Rough Stuff” MIKE ZECK pencil gallery, ARTHUR ADAMS on Gumby, HE-MAN, ROM, MICRONAUTS, SUPER POWERS, SUPER-HERO CARS, art by HAMA, SAL BUSCEMA, GUICE, GOLDEN, KIRBY, TRIMPE, and new ZECK sketch cover!

“Super Girls!” Supergirl retrospective with art by STELFREEZE, HAMNER, SpiderWoman, Flare, Tigra, DC’s unused Double Comics with unseen BARRETTO and INFANTINO art, WOLFMAN and JIMENEZ on Donna Troy, female comics pros, art by SEKOWSKY, OKSNER, PÉREZ, HUGHES, GIORDANO, plus a COLOR GALLERY and COVER by BRUCE TIMM!

“Big, Green Issue!” Tour of NEAL ADAMS’ studio (with interview and art gallery), DAVE GIBBONS “Rough Stuff” pencil art spotlight, interviews with MIKE GRELL (on Green Arrow), PETER DAVID (on Incredible Hulk), a “Pro2Pro” chat between GERRY CONWAY and JOHN ROMITA, SR. (on the Green Goblin), and more. New cover by NEAL ADAMS!

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BACK ISSUE #19

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BACK ISSUE #23

“Unsung Heroes!” DON NEWTON spotlight, STEVE GERBER and GENE COLAN on Howard the Duck, MIKE CARLIN and DANNY FINGEROTH on Marvel’s Assistant Editors’ Month, the unrealized Unlimited Powers TV show, TONY ISABELLA’s aborted plans for The Champions, MARK GRUENWALD tribute, art by SAL BUSCEMA, JOHN BYRNE, and more! NEWTON/ RUBINSTEIN cover!

“Secret Identities!” Histories of characters with unusual alter egos: Firestorm, Moon Knight, the Question, and the “real-life” Human Fly! STEVE ENGLEHART and SAL BUSCEMA on Captain America, JERRY ORDWAY interview and cover, Superman roundtable with SIENKIEWICZ, NOWLAN, MOENCH, COWAN, MAGGIN, O’NEIL, MILGROM, CONWAY, ROBBINS, SWAN, plus FREE ALTER EGO #64 PREVIEW!

“The Devil You Say!” issue! A look at Daredevil in the 1980s and 1990s with interviews and art by KLAUS JANSON, JOHN ROMITA JR., and FRANK MILLER, MIKE MIGNOLA Hellboy interview, DAN MISHKIN and GARY COHN on Blue Devil, COLLEEN DORAN’s unpublished X-Men spin-off “Fallen Angels”, Son of Satan, Stig’s Inferno, DC’s Plop!, JACK KIRBY’s Devil Dinosaur, and cover by MIKE ZECK!

“Dynamic Duos!’ “Pro2Pro” interviews with Batman’s ALAN GRANT and NORM BREYFOGLE and the Legion’s PAUL LEVITZ and KEITH GIFFEN, a “Backstage Pass” to Dark Horse Comics, Robin’s history, EASTMAN and LAIRD’s Ninja Turtles, histories of duos Robin and Batgirl, Captain America and the Falcon, and Blue Beetle and Booster Gold, “Zot!” interview with SCOTT McCLOUD, and a new BREYFOGLE cover!

“Comics Go Hollywood!” Spider-Man roundtable with STAN LEE, JOHN ROMITA, SR., JIM SHOOTER, ERIK LARSEN, and others, STAR TREK comics writers’ roundtable Part 1, Gladstone’s Disney comics line, behindthe-scenes at TV’s ISIS and THE FLASH (plus an interview with Flash’s JOHN WESLEY SHIPP), TV tie-in comics, bonus 8-page color ADAM HUGHES ART GALLERY and cover, plus a FREE WRITE NOW #16 PREVIEW!

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“Magic” issue! MICHAEL GOLDEN interview, GENE COLAN, PAUL SMITH, and FRANK BRUNNER on drawing Dr. Strange, Mystic Art Gallery with CARL POTTS & KEVIN NOWLAN, BILL WILLINGHAM’s Elementals, Zatanna history, Dr. Fate’s revival, a “Greatest Stories Never Told” look at Peter Pan, tribute to the late MARSHALL ROGERS, a new GOLDEN cover, plus a FREE ROUGH STUFF #6 PREVIEW!

“Men of Steel!’ BOB LAYTON and DAVID MICHELINIE on Iron Man, RICH BUCKLER on Deathlok, MIKE GRELL on Warlord, JOHN BYRNE on ROG 2000, Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman, Machine Man, the World’s Greatest Super-Heroes comic strip, DC’s Steel, art by KIRBY, HECK, WINDSOR-SMITH, TUSKA, LAYTON cover, and bonus “Men of Steel” art gallery! Includes a FREE DRAW! #15 PREVIEW!

“Spies and Tough Guys!’ PAUL GULACY and DOUG MOENCH in an art-packed “Pro2Pro” on Master of Kung Fu and their unrealized Shang-Chi/Nick Fury crossover, Suicide Squad spotlight, Ms. Tree, CHUCK DIXON and TIM TRUMAN’s Airboy, James Bond and Mr. T in comic books, Sgt. Rock’s oddball super-hero team-ups, Nathaniel Dusk, JOE KUBERT’s unpublished The Redeemer, and a new GULACY cover!

“Comic Book Royalty!” The ’70s/’80s careers of Aquaman and the Sub-Mariner explored, BARR and BOLLAND discuss CAMELOT 3000, comics pros tell “Why JACK KIRBY Was King,” “Dr. Doom: Monarch or Menace?” DON McGREGOR’s Black Panther; an exclusive ALAN WEISS art gallery; spotlights on ARION, LORD OF ATLANTIS; NIGHT FORCE; and more! New cover by NICK CARDY!

“Heroes Behaving Badly!” Hulk vs. Thing tirades with RON WILSON, HERB TRIMPE, and JIM SHOOTER; CARY BATES and CARMINE INFANTINO on “Trial of the Flash”; JOHN BYRNE’s heroes who cross the line; Teen Titan Terra, Kid Miracleman, Mark Shaw Manhunter, and others who went bad, featuring LAYTON, MICHELINIE, WOLFMAN, and PÉREZ, and more! New cover by DARWYN COOKE!

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NEW STUFF FROM TWOMORROWS!

ROUGH STUFF #8

BACK ISSUE #28

WRITE NOW! #18

DRAW! #15

BRICKJOURNAL #2

Features an in-depth interview and cover painting by the extraordinary MIKE MAYHEW, preliminary and unpublished art by ALEX HORLEY, TONY DeZUNIGA, NICK CARDY, and RAFAEL KAYANAN (including commentary by each artist), a look at the great Belgian comic book artists, a “Rough Critique” of MIKE MURDOCK’s work, and more!

Celebration of STAN LEE’s 85th birthday, including rare examples of comics, TV, and movie scripts from the Stan Lee Archives, tributes by JOHN ROMITA, SR., JOE QUESADA, ROY THOMAS, DENNIS O’NEIL, JIMMY PALMIOTTI, JIM SALICRUP, TODD McFARLANE, LOUISE SIMONSON, MARK EVANIER, and others, plus art by KIRBY, DITKO, ROMITA, and more!

BACK TO SCHOOL ISSUE, covering major schools offering comic art as part of their curriculum, featuring faculty, student, and graduate interviews in an ultimate overview of collegiate-level comic art classes! Plus, a “how-to” demo/ interview with artist BILL REINHOLD, MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS’ COMIC ART BOOTCAMP series, a FREE WRITE NOW #17 PREVIEW, and more!

The ultimate resource for LEGO enthusiasts of all ages spotlights blockbuster summer movies, LEGO style! Go behind the scenes for new sets for BATMAN and INDIANA JONES, and see new models, including an SR-71 SPYPLANE and a LEGO CITY, plus MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATIONS, BUILDING INSTRUCTIONS, tour the ONLINE LEGO FACTORY, and more! Edited by JOE MENO.

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SILVER AGE SCI-FI COMPANION

BEST OF WRITE NOW!

BEST OF DRAW! VOL. 3

In the Silver Age of Comics, space was the place, and this book summarizes, critiques and lovingly recalls the classic science-fiction series edited by JULIUS SCHWARTZ and written by GARDNER FOX and JOHN BROOME! The pages of DC’s science-fiction magazines of the 1960s, STRANGE ADVENTURES and MYSTERY IN SPACE, are opened for you, including story-bystory reviews of complete series such as ADAM STRANGE, ATOMIC KNIGHTS, SPACE MUSEUM, STAR ROVERS, STAR HAWKINS and others! Writer/editor MIKE W. BARR tells you which series crossed over with each other, behind-the-scenes secrets, and more, including writer and artist credits for every story! Features rare art by CARMINE INFANTINO, MURPHY ANDERSON, GIL KANE, SID GREENE, MIKE SEKOWSKY, and many others, plus a glorious new cover by ALAN DAVIS and PAUL NEARY!

Features highlights from the acclaimed magazine about writing for comics, including interviews from top talents, like: BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS, WILL EISNER, JEPH LOEB, STAN LEE, J. M. STRACZYNSKI, MARK WAID, GEOFF JOHNS, TODD McFARLANE, PAUL LEVITZ, AXEL ALONSO, and others! Plus “NUTS & BOLTS” tutorials feature scripts from landmark comics and the pencil art that was drawn from them, including: CIVIL WAR #1 (MILLAR & McNIVEN), BATMAN: HUSH #1 (LOEB & LEE), ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #47 (BENDIS & BAGLEY), AMAZING SPIDERMAN #539 (STRACZYNSKI & GARNEY), SPAWN #52 (McFARLANE & CAPULO), GREEN LANTERN: REBIRTH #1 (JOHNS & VAN SCRIVER), and more! Also: How-to articles by the best comics writers and editors around, professional secrets of top comics pros, and an introduction by STAN LEE! Edited by DANNY FINGEROTH.

Compiles more of the best tutorials and interviews from DRAW! #5-7, including: Penciling by MIKE WIERINGO! Illustration by DAN BRERETON! Design by PAUL RIVOCHE! Drawing Hands, Lighting the Figure, and Sketching by BRET BLEVINS! Cartooning by BILL WRAY! Inking by MIKE MANLEY! Comics & Animation by STEPHEN DeSTEFANO! Digital Illustration by CELIA CALLE and ALBERTO RUIZ! Caricature by ZACH TRENHOLM, and much more! Cover by DAN BRERETON!

MODERN MASTERS VOLUME 16: MIKE ALLRED

(144-page trade paperback) $19.95 ISBN: 9781893905818 Diamond Order Code: JUL073885

(160-page trade paperback) $19.95 ISBN: 9781893905924 Diamond Order Code: FEB084082

(100-page magazine) $6.95 Now Shipping Diamond Order Code: FEB084188

KIRBY FIVE-OH! (JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR #50) The regular columnists from THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR magazine celebrate the best of everything from Jack Kirby’s 50-year career, spotlighting: The BEST KIRBY STORIES & COVERS from 19381987! Jack’s 50 BEST UNUSED PIECES OF ART! His 50 BEST CHARACTER DESIGNS! Interviews with the 50 PEOPLE MOST INFLUENCED BY KIRBY’S WORK! A 50PAGE KIRBY PENCIL ART GALLERY and DELUXE COLOR SECTION! Kirby cover inked by DARWYN COOKE, and an introduction by MARK EVANIER, making this the ultimate retrospective on the career of the “King” of comics! Edited by JOHN MORROW. (168-page tabloid-size trade paperback) $19.95 ISBN: 9781893905894 Diamond Order Code: JUL078147 Now Shipping

Go to www.twomorrows.com for FULL-COLOR downloadable PDF versions of our magazines for only $2.95! Subscribers to the print edition get the digital edition FREE, weeks before it hits stores!

SUBSCRIPTIONS:

(256-page trade paperback) $29.95 ISBN: 9781893905917 Diamond Order Code: JAN083936

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JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR (4 issues)

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1st Class Canada $56

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BACK ISSUE! (6 issues)

$40

$54

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DRAW!, WRITE NOW!, ROUGH STUFF (4 issues)

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$72

ALTER EGO (12 issues) Six-issue subs are half-price!

$78

$108

$132

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$216

BRICKJOURNAL (4 issues)

$32

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$66

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Features an extensive, career-spanning interview lavishly illustrated with rare art from Mike’s files, plus huge sketchbook section, including unseen and unused art! By ERIC NOLEN-WEATHINGTON. (120-page TPB with COLOR) $14.95 ISBN: 9781893905863 Diamond Order Code: JAN083937

COMICS GO HOLLYWOOD Unveils secrets behind your FAVORITE ONSCREEN HEROES, and how a character goes from the comics page to the big screen! It includes: Storyboards from DC’s animated hit “THE NEW FRONTIER”, JEPH LOEB on writing for Marvel Comics and the Heroes TV show, details on the UNSEEN X-MEN MOVIE, a history of the JOKER from the 1940s to the upcoming Dark Knight film, and a look at Marvel Universe co-creator JACK KIRBY’s Hollywood career, with extensive Kirby art! (32-page comic) FREE! at your local comics retailer on FREE COMIC BOOK DAY, May 3, 2008!