Wednesday, May 1, 2013

HOMER HOOPER "Twelve-Dollar Conundrum"

How close can you come to doing an Archie "imitator" without being sued?
Atlas Comics gave it a shot with this series!
This typical tale from Homer Hooper #3 (1953) was scripted by Stan Lee and illustrated by Hy Rosen.
Besides the blonde (who was well-off but not rich), the red-headed lead and the nasty frenemy, the series also featured a brunette, Homer's skinny best friend with a big nose, an athlete, brainy nerd, annoyed teachers and principal, etc.
Hy Rosen, who did a credible job as a Dan DeCarlo clone was one of the few artists working in the style who didn't end up at Archie Comics.
In the mid-1940s he added newspaper editorial cartooning to his already-busy schedule.
When comics almost died in the mid-1950s, Hy took on advertising storyboard work to take up the slack, creating the "White Tornado" ad campaign for Ajax Cleanser!
Hy's last work was for Harvey Comics in the early 1990s...on New Kids on the Block and Saved by the Bell comics!
Interestingly, his eulogy at his "home" newspaper, The Albany Times-Union, makes no mention of his comic book work!
Next week:
We haven't decided yet what it'll be, but we can guarantee that...
You'll Cry Your Eyes Out if You Miss It!
(Oh, you've heard that, eh?)

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

MOD LOVE "Shadow from His Past"

Here's the final tale from the HTF 1967 one-shot Mod Love...
...a magazine-sized periodical that used unusual printing techniques to achive a unique "look".
Written by Michael Lutin, the story (and the entire issue of Western's Mod Love) is illustrated by noted French pop artist Michel Quarez.
Next week:
We haven't decided yet what it'll be, but we can guarantee that...
You'll Cry Your Eyes Out if You Miss It!
(Oh, you've heard that, eh?)
And now a word from our sponsor...
You can own a kool komic collectible...
(t-shirt, mug, tote bag, etc.)
...embellished with the wraparound cover art from the HTF 1960's comic this week's torrid tale is re-presented from...
 ...by clicking HERE!

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

HEART & SOUL "Too Late to Love"

What happens when a torch singer ends up carrying a torch?
This never-reprinted story from MikeRoss' Heart & Soul #2 (1954) tells the tawdry tale...
Both the writer and penciler are unknown, but the layouts look like Carmine Infantino's work.
The inker is Bernard Sachs.
Next week:
We haven't decided yet what it'll be, but we can guarantee that...
You'll Cry Your Eyes Out if You Miss It!
(Oh, you've heard that, eh?)
And now a word from out sponsor...

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

GIRLS' ROMANCES "It's Over -- All Over!"

They're the last words anyone wants to hear from a loved one...
...as presented in this lead tale from DC's Girls' Romances #139 (1969)
When the story was reprinted and updated with modified hairstyles and clothing in Young Romance #203 (1975), it was retitled "Come to My Wedding!"
Though the writer is unknown, the art is credited to Tony Abruzzo, who specialized in romance stories and covers from 1954 to arond 1973, exclusively for DC!
He was one of the artists whose work Roy Lichtenstein "appropriated" for his Pop Art paintings.
Next week:
We haven't decided yet what it'll be, but we can guarantee that...
You'll Cry Your Eyes Out if You Miss It!
(Oh, you've heard that, eh?)

And now a word from out sponsor...

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

FIRST LOVE ILLUSTRATED "I Joined a Teen-Age Sex Club"

If that title doesn't get your attention, nothing will...
...and it wasn't even the cover-featured story in that issue of Harvey's First Love Illustrated!
Surprisingly,  this story from First Love Illustrated #13 (1951) wasn't one of the tales mentioned in Fredric Wertham's anti-comics screed Seduction of the Innocent (1954)!
Tales of scandalous "sex clubs" pop up every so often during periods of sexual repression such as the 1950s and the present, usually in local media looking for a sensationalistic story.
You'll note the tale is presented from scans of the artwork, not the printed comic.
Unfortunately, every copy of the comic we could find is "slabbed" (encased in plastic) to increase it's resale value to the owner.
The fact it renders the comic unreadable is, sadly, secondary to most people.
(The concept of "slabbing" was developed for trading cards which don't have interiors.
The "collector mentality" of dealers adapted the idea to comics and magazines which do have readable interiors that, after being encased in plastic, are no longer accessible!
And removing the comic from the casing lowers the resale value!)
Illustrated by noted good-girl artist Bob Powell (who also did a number of heroine strips including Cave Girl), the writer of this torrid tale is unknown.
Next week:
We haven't decided yet what it'll be, but we can guarantee that...
You'll Cry Your Eyes Out if You Miss It!
(Oh, you've heard that, eh?)
And now a word from out sponsor...