Do You Love O Henry's "Gift of the Magi" as Much as We Do?

...we've presented two of them, each with its' own particular charms!

by Gary Gianni

and

by John Fago & Anton Caravanna

O Henry's classic Christmas story of True Love has been adapted into every media format imaginable, sometimes as a period piece, sometimes updated to the present, and, in a couple of cases, projected into the future!

Tomorrow...

Another, rarely-seen graphic retelling of the classic Christmas tale!

You'll Cry Your Eyes Out If You Miss It!

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Gift of the Magi

 adapted by PJ Lynch 

Alex Toth Tales THRILLING ROMANCES "Chance for Happiness"

Can a war bride find happiness in America with her ex-army husband?

Or will annoying in-laws who look down their noses at immigrants screw the whole thing up?

While the scripter of this poignant tale of redemption and reconciliation from Standard's Thrilling Romances #23 (1953) is unknown, the pencil art is by comics legend Alex Toth (with inks by Mike Peppe) who went from being one of comics' best storytellers to designing/art directing most of the 1960s-70s non-funny animal output of tv animation studio Hanna-Barbera, including Space Ghost, Scooby-Doo, Super Friends, and Josie and the Pussycats!
So, this month, our topic is one particular artist, and we'll be featuring his romance comics art from the 1950s through 1970s!

Next Week:

We Don't Know Which Alex Toth Tale We'll Present...Yet!

But, We Guarantee That...

You'll Cry Your Eyes Out If You Miss It!

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Treasures Retold

Lost Art of Alex Toth

Halloween HeartBreak WEIRD ADVENTURES "Seeker from Beyond"

Sometimes, a casual reader would think all comic book sci-fi is space opera...

Art by Phil Marini

...but it can also be a combination of dimensional travel, romance, and, yes, just a tiny bit of space opera...

See, just a little space opera..one panel!

Note: on the cover, Zada, the alien queen is brunette, while John's girlfriend Jane is blonde!
But in the story, Zada is blonde and Jane is brunette!

Both the writer and artist of this cover-featured tale from Ziff-Davis' Weird Adventures #10 (1951) are unknown!
Even the amazingly-extensive Comic Book DataBase can't identify them!

Cover artist Phil Marini did numerous pulp and paperback covers in every genre from Western to sci-fi to romance, but this is his only comic book work.

Next Week:

Another Surreal Story of...

HAUNTED HEARTBREAK

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Gothic Tales of Haunted Love

BARBIE Foreign Magazines and Current Comics

Though Barbie's publishing history in America is somewhat irregular...

...in Europe there has almost always been some periodical starring the fashion doll who was, in fact, based on a European fashion doll!

The magazines tend to feature materials about the dolls and related products along with teen lifestyle articles and fumetti starring the dolls themselves...

I don't remember American Barbies having spacesuits (or ray guns) like these, so they may have been European market exclusives, or custom-produced for the fumetti!

Note that while these pages are in sequence, they're not consecutive.

BTW, that last word means "end" in Swedish, not what it means in English!

(Get your minds out of the gutter!)

Meanwhile, in America, Barbie's been in a publishing revival since around 2015, with an interesting twist...

The character, as portrayed in current comics, is younger than the 18-25 year old adult previously-shown...

...and her adventures are far more fantastical!
And speaking of "fantastical"...

See Barbie when it opens in theatres this weekend!

Next Week:

The Story of a Rival 1960s Fashion Doll Who Had Her Own Long-Running Comic Book Series!

(and yes, there's a surprise twist to the tale!)

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Barbie and Ruth

The Story of the World's Most Famous Doll and the Woman Who Created Her

BARBIE & KEN "Wedding"

For girls of the late 1950s thru early 1970s, Barbie and Ken dolls were fashion icons...

...so it was inevitable that there would be a comic book about their adventures.

 But, as it turns out, Barbie and Ken were secretly married the entire time!

It's true!

Here's the story from Dell Comics' Barbie & Ken #1 (1962)...

Surprised?

To be fair, the never-reprinted tale, illustrated by Norman Nodel, details the little girls in the Barbie Fan Club telling their own alleged experiences with Barbie and Ken...which are no doubt fantasies since they cover Barbie being a nurse, a ballerina, and a stewardess, as well as getting married!
Except...who is the kid going off with Patty?
As you might have guessed, Mattel had play sets (clothing and props) showing Barbie doing all those things!
BTW, note that Nodel deliberately kept both Barbie and Ken "on model", looking very much like the actual dolls...except they could bend their arms and legs (which the dolls couldn't do until the late 1960s)!

Next Week:

Another Never-Reprinted Story About Barbie!

You'll Cry Your Eyes Out If You Miss It!

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Barbie and Ruth

The Story of the World's Most Famous Doll and the Woman Who Created Her

Romance on the Range ROMANCE TRAIL "Romantic Tenderfoot"

This is one of those "contemporary city slicker finds love at the dude ranch" tales...

...but with an unusual twist, which fans of Old West fiction will appreciate!

Illustrated by John Giunta and scripted by an unknown writer, this never-reprinted tale from DC's Romance Trail #2 (1949) plays up one of the "open secrets" of genre (mystery/sci fi-fantasy/Western) fiction...that a number of supposed male authors were actually women, whether using a name that could be either male or female (as Lee does) or a male pseudonym!
There's an article about the phenomenon in Old West fiction HERE!
Ironically, this comic book story was, more than likely, scripted by a male writer!

Next Week:

Another "Romance on the Range"!

You'll Cry Your Eyes Out if You Miss It!

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Cowgirl Bride