Wednesday, February 17, 2021

FAST WILLIE JACKSON "Frankie in 'What -- Me Worry' "

"Sadie Hawkins Dances" were popular in the pre-Women's Lib days...

...when the concept of girls asking boys out was still considered a novelty!
Illustrated by Gus Lemoine, the script for this never-reprinted tale from Fitzgerald's Fast Willie Jackson #6 (1977) was either by him or publisher/editor Bertram Fitzgerald.
Previously, Gus pencilled shorts and a couple of covers at Archie Comics from 1967 to the mid-1970s.
The Fast Willie books were his final credited work.
(There is a theory that Gus was really Henry Scarpelli, a versatile humor artist who did work for Archie as well as Archie-clone books for both Marvel and DC.
The period when "Gus" was active at Archie was before Scarpelli's credited work appeared there and disappeared after Scarpelli began receiving credit for his work on Archie titles.
So...it's like "Gee, Clark, we never see you when Superman's around! Why's that?"
Lois Lane couldn't prove it, either.

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...
featuring the cover art from the first, never-reprinted issue!

Sunday, February 14, 2021

YOUNG ROMANCE "Without a Doubt"

A never-reprinted one-pager from DC's Young Romance #203 (1975)...
...writer and artist unknown.
The kool thing is that it presents a universal concept in visual form that just happens to feature Black characters.
In fact, odds are the artist(s) made the choice for reasons only he/she/they will ever know...💖
Happy Valentine's Day!

Wednesday, February 10, 2021

NEGRO ROMANCE "Too Late for Love"

Boy meets girl...
...girl's best friend marries boy!
Girl falls for new boy, but then best friend and hubby re-enter girl's life and...
Presuming Artie does take her back and they marry, how are they going to get custody of the kid?
I suspect writer Roy Ald didn't really think the problem through in this never-reprinted story from Fawcett's Negro Romance #1(1950)!
The illustrator who hewed closely to the Fawcett "house style" is unknown.
Thanks to Kracalactaka for the scans.

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...
featuring the cover art from all four HTF issues
on kool kollectibles!

Wednesday, February 3, 2021

SOUL LOVE "Dedicated Nurse"

At long last, we present the final story...
...from Jack (King) Kirby's Soul Love!
Note...it's somewhat "politically incorrect"...but not for the reason you might think!
(Hey, look!
A "Kirby Quote"!)
You'll note pages 5 and 6 aren't as "clean" as the other pages, which are scanned from the actual original art!
They're scanned from photocopies, which are the only versions I could acquire, but they're legible enough to "fill out" the tale!
(Oh, man!
More "Kirby Quotes"!)
Written/penciled/edited by Jack Kirby and inked by Vince Colletta, the story takes the typical attitude of the period about overweight women, though Aleda's not actually obese.
(In fact, I was involved with a woman who had a similar body type, which I found extremely-appealing!)

You can read other Soul Love tales we've presented HERE.
Soul Love would have been the second romance comic oriented to a Black audience.
The first was the four-issue 1950s series Negro Romances, which we covered HERE.
Thanks to Kracalactaka for the scans.
Next Week:
We don't know what we'll present..yet,
but we can guarantee that...
You'll Cry Your Eyes Out if You Miss It!
And now a word from our sponsor...
Please Support True Love Comics Tales

Wednesday, January 27, 2021

Love in the Time of Covid-19 LOVELORN "Helping Heart!"

Just when you thought they couldn't do anything else with a disease-themed romance tale...
...this never-reprinted story from ACG's LoveLorn #3 (1949-50) comes along with a tale jam-packed with unexpected soap opera-style plot-twists!
Wow!
I'm exhausted!
So, jaded, manipulative girl loses handsome doctor to woman whose inherent innocence and purity of heart (and extreme work ethic) lures the MD to her...and she didn't even intend to do so!
Next Week...
Another Tale of Disease, Debilitating Conditions and Desire!
You'll Cry Your Eyes Out If You Miss It!
And now a word from our sponsor...
Please Support True Love Comics Tales
Visit Amazon and Order...