Cover Cavalcade

 Four Color #874, from 1957.


I love the way the artist uses the burning ship and cannon blasts to light the scene.

One odd thing about the story inside: This is a sequel to the Disney movie Johnny Tremain (which was based on a novel by Esther Forbes). The movie covers the events of the Boston Tea Party to the battles of Lexington and Concord as seen through the eyes of a teenager. This comic covers events from the War of 1812. But--after 40 years have passed--Johnny Tremain is still a teenager!!!

Oh, well. Though the story doesn't explicitly say so, perhaps it's Johnny Tremain II or even the III.

Hey!! I'm on the Kindle!!

I've taken a chapter from a book idea that didn't work out and put an e-copy up for sale on Amazon.com. If you've ever been interested in learning more about the radio version of Green Acres (and who hasn't?), here's you chance:
Granby's Green Acres

Friday's Favorite OTR

Mr. Moto: "Dry Martini" from 10/20/51

This was the last episode of Mr. Moto's short-lived attempt to move to radio.

Moto had an interesting career. In the original novels, he's an agent for the Japanese government. In the Peter Lorre films from the late 1930s, he starts as an importer who dabbles in detective work, then later goes to work for the "International Police," looking out for (ironically) the interests of the Western powers.

When he came to radio 5 years after the end of World War II, he became a Japanese-American, working to foil communist plots across the world.

In all these versions of the character, his basic personality is pretty much the same--he's very polite and patient, but also very intelligent--and absolutely ruthless when called upon to be so.

"Dry Martini" finds Moto investigating a smuggling operation. This quickly evolves into a murder case when the owner of an import company gets killed. What makes this episode particularly fun is both the good twist at the end and a collection of entertainingly annoying suspects. Mr. Moto's famous patience is put to a test several times as he deals with people who either won't tell him what he needs to know or tell him far more than he wants to know, but he (of course) figures it all out in the end.

Click HERE to listen or download.

A Pretty Good Bad Guy

If you enjoy pulp-era fiction as much as I do, then a must-own book is The Black Lizard Big Book of Pulps, published in 2007. It’s a treasure trove of cool detective and mystery stories from the 1920s, 30s and 40s. I picked up a copy a few years back, then soon after got a copy for my Kindle. This sucker is one big book, so the e-version is just easier to carry around.

It also allows me to read another story whenever the mood strikes me, so I still haven’t quite finished it. There’s a lot of great stuff here: tales by Erle Stanley Gardner, Hammett, Chandler, Frederick Nebel and other masters of the genre.

There’s also a few by less-well-known authors. One of these is “Dance Macabre,” by Robert Reeves, first published a 1941 issue of Black Mask magazine. The main character is a tuberculosis-ridden pickpocket named Firpo Cole. He hangs out at a dime-a-dance taxi joint because he’s got it bad for one of the girls. Unfortunately for him, that girl has it bad for the club’s owner.

When the girl turns up dead, Firpo is the main suspect. The cops bring him in and beat him up a few times, but he doesn’t confess. Aside from being innocent, he wants to find the killer on his own—get justice for the girl he loved.

Firpo is a sad, broken human being surrounded by other broken human beings. He works as the “hero” because you can’t help but feel sympathy for him. He’s not tough or smart or all that capable, but he is stubborn and it seems he really did love the girl. And when he finally figures out who the killer is—well, his final action isn’t a complete surprise, but the stark, simple sentence that ends the story carries a real emotional punch.

A lot of pulp stories are just plain fun without any deeper emotions behind them. But there’s a few—like “Dance Macabre”—that really get under your skin.

History of the Marvel Universe: February 1966, Part 2

STRANGE TALES #141

It’s a good thing comic book characters don’t usually know they are comic book characters. The good guys, at least, would probably go nuts knowing that no villain or villainous organization is ever eliminated completely.


SHIELD mops up Hydra in this issue, with the Hydra leader getting offed by his own men before he can press the self-destruct button. But Hydra isn’t gone for good. It’ll be back again. And again. And again….


Anyway, Nick also lets the leader’s daughter escape as thanks for her help. Then, without time to take a breath, he plunges into another adventure. On a trip to SHIELD’s new ESP division, he finds out a former agent with Esper abilities has gone rogue. A lot of this issue also involves an intricate jail break by a criminal inventive genius called the Fixer. The Fixer and the rogue esper (who will take the name Mentallo next issue) will be teaming up for the next story line. It’s a neat paring—the technical guy and the psychic guy. Plus, Jack Kirby really seems to have a ball taking us step-by-step through the Fixer’s prison escape using various gadgets he had built from spare parts. (Note to all wardens: For heaven sake, stop letting super-villains work in the prison machine shop!.)


Off in another dimension, Dormammu is ticked off at Mordo for interfering in the big D’s one-on-one fight against Dr. Strange. So Mordo is banished into the Dimension of Demons (which does not sound like a good thing), while Strange recovers and goads Dormammu into continuing the fight.

Playing on the powerful villain’s ego, Dr. Strange manages to outfight him and win the bout. Dormammu is forced to promise never to endanger Earth. He does get some petty revenge by banishing Clea (who is still unnamed—gee whiz, Stan, give the girl a break) to an unknown dimension.

Strange and the now healthy Ancient One return to Earth. But when Strange gets home, he’s unaware that Mordo’s minions have planted a bomb. He’s got the house rigged to detect magical threats, but something more mundane passes unnoticed. Tick, tick, tick…

This pretty much brings an exciting story arc to an end. It is, in my opinion, the best arc Dr. Strange has ever had—culminating in a multi-issue magical wrestling match that showcases Ditko’s unique and often stunning art style. Stan Lee will be writing just one more issue before passing the reins for this book onto others—most notably Roy Thomas. Dr. Strange will always be a cool character and he’ll still be in some strong stories, but we’ve finished up what I believe to be for him the best of the best.

DAREDEVIL #13

Jack Kirby continues to supply the layouts for John Romita’s pencils as this fast-moving story continues. It’s another case where so much happens, it’s difficult to summarize briefly.

But by the end of the issue, Plunder has captured both Ka-Zar and Daredevil and brought them back to his castle in England. Ka-Zar is his long-lost brother and both of them have half of a medallion. This medallion is of a rare metal discovered by their dad that reflects energy and causes surrounding matter to disintegrate.

It’s unnamed here, but this is (I believe) the first appearance of Vibrinium in the Marvel Universe. It’s something that’s destined to become the Macguffin in countless stories.

Well, everyone pretty much has a chance to fight everyone else before the issue is over. Ka-Zar and DD get loose, but they are pursued both by spies who want the medallion and the local cops (Plunder has accused them of murder). The two heroes are being knocked for a loop by a rifle grenade in the last panel.

The art looks great and, as I mentioned last time, Kirby’s return to the book (along with Romita’s skilled pencils) seems to have reinvigorated the title. This is really exciting stuff.

There’s one some continuity error. At the beginning of the issue, Daredevil has lost his powers due to an explosion while Ka-Zar is out looking for healing herbs. Both men are captured before Ka-Zar can give the herbs to Daredevil. Later, when DD’s powers are returning, he mentally credits the herbs—despite Ka-Zar never having had a chance to give them to him.

Oh, well. It’s hardly a story-wrecking error. But it’s fun to take note of it.

X-MEN #17

Iceman, injured in the fight with the Sentinals, is in a coma. The other X-Men are getting minor injuries patched up when the Angel learns his parents are coming to the school for a visit. He flies back there to meet them, only to be captured by an unseen intruder.

Scott and Xavier head back to the school when they don’t hear from Warren—only to get captured.

Jean and Hank head back to the school when they don’t hear from Scott and the professor—only to get captured. All the prisoners are loaded into a big balloon and turned lose to drift to the upper atmosphere.

The captor turns out to be Magneto. His return is nicely times. There had been a danger of overusing him early in the book’s run, but exiling him to deep space six issues back gave us a needed break. His return is appropriately dramatic and well-handled.

Next week, we’ll see Thor enter HIS best story ever. We’ll also visit, as usual, with Namor, Hulk, Iron Man and Captain America.

A to Z Comic and Pulp Cover list

Z is for:

ZORRO

and

ZEPPELIN STORIES

I'm going to keep posting covers every Monday. Just one pulp or comic cover at a time and without necessarily following any sort of pattern. I'll just grab a cover that I think is cool and put it up, sometimes along with a brief comment on it.


I will, almost inevitably, end up inadvertently repeating a cover image I've used before, but what the hey.

Friday's Favorite OTR

The Lone Ranger: “Army Mules” 6/22/45


Jane Miller owns the Double-M ranch and raises mules. In fact, she just won a contract to sell mules to the Army.


Slick Wilson owns the rival Triple-W ranch and has a nefarious plan—involving altering the brands on Jane’s mules and framing her for theft—to ruin Jane and take the Army contract away from her.


Fortunately for Jane, the Lone Ranger is around. Tonto goes undercover as a cook at the Triple-W to gain information, then the Ranger comes up with a clever plan (involving re-altering the altered brands) that leads to one of those great moments when the bad guy’s plan unravels right in front of him while he stands helpless to stop it.


This is a fine story. The Ranger and Tonto get to do some action stuff at one point when they rescue some kidnapped ranch hands from the Triple-W, but it’s Slick Wilson being caught in the web of his own lies at the end that really make this episode a good one.

Click HERE to listen or download.

Why-oh-Why didn't Street & Smith do team ups?

There were a lot of hero pulps in the 1930s and 1940s--fiction magazines that recounted the adventures of a specific hero. The best of these is almost certainly The Shadow, but he had a lot of strong competition.

The Shadow was published by Street and Smith, one of the best publishing houses of the era in terms of quality. In fact, the hero pulps put out by S & S included Doc Savage, the Avenger and the Whisperer. All were really cool. All had cool agents or sidekicks. And all are currently being reprinted. Snatch 'em up if you can. There's some wonderful adventure storytelling behind those awesome covers.

I've always thought it was tragic that it apparently never occurred to the otherwise talented editors at Street and Smith to put out a special issue or two in which their heroes could team up with one another. Heck, most of them were based in New York. The Shadow and most of his agents hung out there. Doc Savage had a headquarters on the 86th floor of an unnamed skyscraper (generally considered to be the Empire State Building). The Avenger and his organization (Justice, Inc) were based there.

The Whisperer was based in an unnamed city, but all the other guys traveled quite a bit. So a team-up involving him would have been easily arranged.

But it never happened. The Shadow might be battling thugs on a tenement rooftop while Doc Savage was tracing kidnappers through the streets of New York and the Avenger was investigating a bombed out building, but none of them ever crossed paths.

It would have been too much fun for words. Even a minor team up between their various agents would have been cool. Heck, Smitty from Justice Inc and Long Tom from Doc Savage's team were both skilled electrical engineers. They could have met and worked together. Monk (Doc Savage) and Mac (Justice Inc) were both chemists. And agents of the Shadow such as Rutledge Mann and Clyde Burke had reason to come into contact with all sorts of people through their respective jobs as investment broker and newspaper reporter.

Doc Savage's pretty cousin Pat ran a high-priced beauty shop that probably was frequented by both Margo Lane (the Shadow's agent) and Nellie Grey (who worked for the Avenger), so the distaff trio could have easily teamed up for an adventure.

Now that I think of it, a back-up feature in one of the hero pulps featuring team-ups of the various agents would have been the most brilliant idea ever. I really need to invent a time machine, go back to the 1930s, and sell this concept.

In 1989, DC Comics finally managed to put the Shadow and Doc Savage together into the same adventure (and had some fun with the Shadow getting annoyed at the constant bickering between Doc's men Ham and Monk), but it never happened during the pulp era. I would have loved to see what Shadow writer Walter Gibson or Savage's scribe Lester Dent might have done with the idea.

But it was never to be. Oh, well. No world---not even the world of pulp fiction--is perfect.

History of the Marvel Universe: February 1966, Part 1

FANTASTIC FOUR #47


Lots of action once again, as the FF subdue the Dragon Man, save Triton’s life and trail the Inhumans back to the Great Refuge—their hidden city in the Andes.


Black Bolt and his posse have returned their as well. Black Bolt grabs his crown back from his tyrannical brother Maximus, but Max still has plans to use his “atmo-gun” to conquer humankind. The issue ends with him firing off this weapon.


All through this fast-moving and well-paced adventure, there’s a lot of nice character moments of the sort that make the Fantastic Four stand out from the superhero crowd. There’s still a bit of a false note regarding how quickly Johnny and Crystal have fallen for each other, but moments between Reed and Sue and between Ben and Alicia are handled very nicely. (Though Sue pausing to change her hair style in the middle of a DANGEROUS MISSION is just a bit stereotypical.)

Alicia shows up for a few panels during the fight with Dragon Man, when the giant beastie (with Ben hanging on to him for dear life) crashes through the wall to her apartment/studio. This sort of thing actually happens a lot to poor Alicia. In fact, in a couple of issues, a stunned Silver Surfer is going to crash through her window. This is proof that Alicia must be a very successful artist. How else could she possibly afford what must be astronomical insurance premiums?

SPIDER MAN #33

Spider Man is a great character and—despite the perhaps irrevocable character derailment he’s undergone in regular Marvel continuity over the past few years—there have been any number of truly great stories throughout his history. So it’s arguable to name a single story to designate as THE best. All the same, I’m tempted to do that here. This very well may be the Ur-Spidey story—the one that perfectly defines who the character is within the framework of an exciting and well-constructed Spider Man story.

Spidey is still trapped under tons of debris and seems doomed. But he refuses to give up—knowing that to do so would also doom the person he most cares for in the world. So he goes into overdrive. Actually, since he spent most of the last issue in overdrive, it’s probably more accurate to say he goes into over-overdrive.

In a truly exciting action sequence, he frees himself from the debris, survives getting swept up in a junk-filled flood as Doc Ock’s underwater base floods, then fights a dozen or so minions. And, though he’s bruised, beaten and teetering on total exhaustion, he wins. He gets the element needed to make the life-saving serum to Doctor Connors, then rushes the serum to the hospital in the nick of time. Aunt May is saved.

There’re a few nice character moments as well. Betty sees Peter bruised—his cover story is that he got mixed up in a fight while taking photographs. This causes Betty to realize she can’t handle a relationship with someone who is always taking risks. Then there’s a great scene with Jameson. Peter is in no mood to take any guff from the newsman and demands a good price for the photos. He gets enough to cover May’s medical bills, but doesn’t realize that Jonah still paid him less than the photos are worth.

It’s pretty much a perfect story. It really should seem corny, but it doesn’t. The character beats for Peter are perfect from the first panel to the last. Ditko’s art and action choreography has never been better. It really may be the best Spider Man story ever.

AVENGERS #25

Doctor Doom decides to kidnap the Avengers and use them as bait to lure the Fantastic Four into a trap. So he sends a letter to Wanda and Pietro, claiming to be from a long-lost relative who knows who their parents are.

Actually, by the time the siblings’ origins are retconned a few times over the years, they are going to end up being sorry to find out who their daddy really is. But for now, it’s off to Latveria to meet the relative. Cap and Hawkeye tag along AND NOT ONE OF THEM REMEMBERS THAT LATVERIA IS RULED BY DOCTOR DOOM UNTIL AFTER THEY GET THERE. Gee whiz. Don’t Avengers ever read a newspaper or watch the evening news? Did Cap ever pop over the Germany during World War II to only then think “Oh, that’s right. Hitler’s in charge here, isn’t he?”

Oh, well. Other than that undeniably silly moment, the story is pretty good. To escape Latveria, the Avengers have to defeat Doom. After two successive encounters, they manage to do just that, making their getaway at the end. The battles are fun ones, with the four heroes working together smoothly to come out on top.

Next week, we’ll look at one of Dr. Strange’s finest moments, along with peeks at Nick Fury, Daredevil and the X-Men.

A to Z Comic and Pulp Cover list

Y is for:

YOUNG MEN COMICS

and

YARNS