Beautiful Balloons with Maggie Thompson

Next Barnaby 48 Years Ago Today

David — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 17:53:46 GMT

I'm not going to keep this up for long, but wouldn't it be great to get this on a daily basis? Or in a book? Or (better yet) the original run printed large -- in a book?

The Revamped Barnaby by Crockett Johnson

David — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 19:54:48 GMT

Another basement find was a scrapbook which we may actually have put together ourselves. It contains the version of his Barnaby strip that Crockett Johnson (penname of David Leisk (1906-1975) put together as a revival of the strip he'd created, written, and drawn from 1940 to 1946. The official Crockett Johnson website says the revival was written by Johnson and drawn by Warren Sattler. It also says the revival didn't last long.

Here are the opening two strips, followed by the sequence that began Nov. 1, 1960, continuing to the strip that ran 48 years ago today ...

While Barnaby could see Mr. O'Malley, events never put his Fairy Godfather within view of Barnaby's parents. Concerned over his fantasies, they finally sought help. They took Barnaby to an expert, who set up a test for the little boy:

Steve Canyon Data Found in Basement

David — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 19:37:22 GMT

This is sort of the way my life goes. After several weeks of working out the details, I'm having my furnace replaced with a heat pump system -- and (I hope) solving a matter of not having a second-floor air-return-vent thingy as part of the house's heating-and-cooling system. What this all means is that, in the quest for the greater good, I have to Move Things About. Again.

But the "again" part isn't as repetitious as some Moving Things About events have been. I discovered (as I unstacked boxes from the tops of other boxes) that some of the Things haven't been moved for years. And a few of the file drawers have quietly contained nice surprises, lurking there in wait for the Christmas-morning feeling of the "Wow! I didn't know I had that!" treat.

One item that awaited rediscovery was a Steve Canyon scrapbook. Don and I didn't make it; my guess is that we bought it from a second-hand dealer somewhere -- maybe even in a Salvation Army Store find. After all this time, I have no idea. While the strips have long since been reprinted, their previous owner included some tangential material -- and I haven't seen this particular clipping elsewhere.

Here, then, for your entertainment and edification:

Following up on My Halloween Post

David — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 23:42:39 GMT

About an hour ago, I received a phonecall from my brother (link on the left), to whom I'd sent packets of the four Halloween comics. He called to say that the comics seemed to be a success in his area (small-town New York State a couple of hours north of NYC). He said one child had initially reacted in doubt to the Peanuts comic, but the parent pointed out that the child had just watched the Peanuts Halloween show, and this was the comic book. And all was well. (More anecdotes at his site, if you link there now.)

Comics for Halloween 2008

David — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 21:55:30 GMT

For the second year in a row, a few comic-book companies have produced giveaway comics specifically as Halloween treats. Unless you frequented an area comics shop (and you should be doing that, of course), you may not be aware of the lovely little packets of comics to hand trick-or-treaters.

Here they are!

Where the Heck Has Maggie Been?

David — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 18:09:12 GMT

Yeah, my postings haven't exactly been a daily event recently -- AND tomorrow and Tuesday I'll be obsessed with wrapping up the next issue, so STILL no postings ...

But where I've been was much fun: the Friends of Old Time Radio convention in Newark. If you click on Paul Curtis' link to the left, you'll not only be able to see a bunch of public-domain comic-book stories, but also a few of his photos from this weekend's celebration of an art form that never died in England but that basically Went Away in America.

Among the countless delights was a performance by Chuck McCann (often referred to in Mark Evanier's blog -- also see the link to the left) as, almost simultaneously, the narrator of a Lone Ranger adventure AND Silver. IF the video I recorded turns out OK, I'll post a clip eventually: magnificent!

In the course of the weekend, daughter Valerie appeared in a re-creation of a lost Sam Spade episode (some sound effects by brother Paul) that may air later today on the NYC radio station WBAI. And Valerie and I appeared in a re-creation of a surviving Henry Aldrich episode. Whee! At some point, I'll try to post some clips of those, too. If you get a chance to attend an OTR convention, try it out. Seriously.

Science and Invention

David — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 16:22:13 GMT

I love book sales. Big surprise, right? I finally joined the Association of University Women, which has -- over the years -- put on some of the very best book sales I've ever attended. So this was the first time I could help to put one together. This specific event has the following schedule:

Thursday Oct. 23, 2008 3-8 p.m.

Friday Oct. 24, 2008 9 a.m.-8 p.m.

Saturday Oct. 25, 2008 9 a.m.-5 p.m. half-price day

Sunday Oct. 26, 2008 noon-3 p.m. "$5 per armload"

It's inside the Northland Mall in Appleton, Wis. But that's not my point.

You might want to Google "AAUW" plus "book" plus the name of a nearby city to see whether there's a similar sale scheduled for your area. Since some will already have ended this late in the year, it's a good idea to check it out every few months. But that's not my point.

What's my point? Well, I suggest you go in with your eyes open and your mind set to explore whatever it is you find there. Because what happened to me yesterday is that I walked by an opened box that had a bunch of old magazines sitting in it, and below you'll see three that were among them. Let me explain in advance:

Hugo Gernsback (1884-1967) is sometimes called "The Father of Modern Science Fiction." The annual Hugo Awards are named for him. He was also a radio pioneer and founded radio station WRNY. He founded the first magazine devoted exclusively to science fiction -- Amazing Stories -- with its first issue dated April 1926. (In fact, he founded the first six science-fiction magazines.) But before he created Amazing Stories, he injected SF concepts in some of his other work. He wrote the SF novel Ralph 124C41+ and he hired classic SF artist Frank R. Paul to illustrate material in magazines before Amazing Stories began.

And the three issues that were in that opened box were edited by Hugo Gernsback before Amazing Stories. The first below was the last of the three published and looks like a sort of Popular Science -- but it has some SF content (and even a letter from a reader complaining about the fiction). It was dated Dec 1925. The second below (May 1924) has a science-fictional thrust (and, I'd guess, a cover by Paul). The third (Aug 1924) clearly has extraterrestrial content. I pulled the three issues, since the highest price for the AAUW wasn't likely to be reached in a local book sale. And this week I'll start sending messages to possible sellers. In the meantime, enjoy. (And what looks like brown on the covers is actually a fifth ink: gold. Gernsback wrote, "THE GOLDEN AGE OF SCIENCE is symbolized by the golden cover OF SCIENCE & INVENTION, LOOK FOR THE GOLD COVER every month!")

What Do You Think about the Scans?

David — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 20:17:46 GMT

Now that my main scanning computer is no longer coughing blood (thanks again, Dan!), I think my scanning results of these old strips is improved. That is to say, you should actually be able to read the things. So should I rescan the already posted images and substitute better ones in the original postings? Should I, instead, post scans of different strips from the same series as entirely new posts? Should I just muddle my way ahead and not worry about what has come before?

Let me know.

Miss Peach by Mell Lazarus

David — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 20:13:49 GMT

This strip ran from 1957 to 2002, and its artist-writer was Mel (aka Mell) Lazarus (1927-), who also produced the comic strip Momma and is multi-talented enough to have produced a number of entertainments in a number of formats. He has entries at Lambiek, Wikipedia, and Don Markstein's Toonopedia. These strips ran in 1960:

Rick O'Shay by Stan Lynde

David — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:03:47 GMT

As you've no doubt figured out, the strips I've been running have been from the actual strips clipped from newspapers. But a comment on my Tumbleweeds posting sent me looking for any samples of Rick O'Shay — and I'm providing you with a few strips in the reprint volumes writer-artist Stan Lynde (1931-) has released of the strip that he began in 1958 and wrote and drew until 1977, when Alfredo Alcala took over. (Lynde's Latigo began in 1979 and ran until 1983, suffering in part from the same pressure that kept O'Shay limited; a newspaper that was running Tumbleweeds would respond to the solicitation that it was already running "a Western strip.") This sample ran in 1961:

Hi and Lois by Dik Browne

David — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 14:47:25 GMT

I've been featuring some of the strips you're least likely to have come across. Here's a look back at one of the best-known. It began in 1954 and is still running today, originally by Mort Walker (1923-) and Dik Browne (1918-1998), today by Brian and Greg Walker and Robert "Chance" Browne. We all recall (don't we?) that Lois is Beetle Bailey's sister; there's that and much more at Wikipedia and Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Here's a sampling from the very beginning of 1962:

Tumbleweeds by T.K. Ryan

David — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 14:50:28 GMT

Let's see whether my revived computer did a better job in strip scanning than what I was able to manage in September. First up is Tumbleweeds by Tom K. Ryan (1926-), which Wikipedia says began in September 1965 and ended Dec. 30, 2007. There's lots more information and fun at the Tumbleweeds website, and here are a few from November 1967 that also show how it was introduced when The Pittsburgh Press picked it up:

More Eddie Carroll

David — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 14:38:56 GMT

As I wrote earlier, Carroll was nice enough to pose with folks who asked. So here he is last year with my daughter, Valerie. (By the way, at this year's FOTR convention, October 23-26 in Newark, Valerie will perform as Effie with The Gotham Radio Players in a re-creation of an episode of The Adventures of Sam Spade for which the script survives but the recorded performance does not.) (Also by the way: Though his stance with Valerie and Anthony might make you think he's a one-note performer, I guarantee that is not the case. He's in complete command of the character throughout his impersonation.)

Eddie Carroll

David — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 18:55:18 GMT

One of the reasons I have this blog set up the way it is is that I can just hop to the links on the left and check on my brother, Neil Gaiman's blog [I'm doling out Neil's The Graveyard Book to myself via his CD reading, which is stupendous; just saying ...], the NPR pop-culture blog, and Mark Evanier's blog, not necessarily in that order. But it's sort of one-stop clicking for me.

And I note that right now Mark is recommending Eddie Carroll's one-man show in which Carroll channels Jack Benny. As an Old Time Radio buff myself, I was lucky enough last year at the Friends of Old Time Radio convention to see Carroll perform as Benny in a re-creation of one of my favorite episodes -- and Carroll was uncanny. His performance is done with affection and care, and he's perfection. And funny.

And one of the nicest people you'll meet, if you get a chance to talk with him. He patiently posed with a number of people, giving each person both time and pleasant courtesy.

And he has another distinction, which he discussed at one of the event's panels: He is now the official voice of Walt Disney's Jiminy Cricket.

If you have a chance to see him perform, by all means, do so. He's marvelous. And here's a shot of him with the director of the FOTR re-creation, Anthony Tollin. Can you guess which is Carroll?

Fred Basset by Alex Graham

David — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 20:44:42 GMT

The basset hound Fred has his own Wikipedia entry, and his first appearance by cartoonist Alex Graham (1917-1991) appeared in The Daily Mail July 8, 1963. (Huzzah! A British strip for which the first publication date appears online!) Graham based the strip's character on his own pet. Don Markstein has an entry on the strip, too -- as does Lambiek. Here are a few from 1964.

Odd Bodkins by Dan O'Neill

David — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 21:07:20 GMT

Dan O'Neill (1942-) is a talented underground comix creator about whom the Lambiek.net site says he "began his career in 1967 with a strip called Odd Bodkins." Well, far's I can tell, this sampling was first published in 1964 -- and he'd been active in comix prior to that. Just saying.

He drew national attention when the Disney organization stomped him for his Air Pirates comix material dealing with its characters, but comix buffs had been following his work for some time. He has his own website and sells rarities there. Lambiek also says, "O'Neill has largely remained inactive in the field of comix since [1979]." As you'll see on his website, you'll find he has continued to produce distinctive cartoons.

King Aroo by Jack Kent

David — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 16:23:36 GMT

Jack Kent (1920-1985) is best known today as a children's book writer and artist, but he also produced a wonderful comic strip titled King Aroo, whose title character sort of ruled the kingdom of Myopia. His cohorts included sidekick Yupyop, the mail-carrying kangaroo Mr. Pennipost, and the forgetful Mr. Elephant. Kent incorporated some of the strip's characters (e.g., Mr. Pennipost and Mr. Elephant) in some of his children's books. The strip itself ran from 1950 to 1965, but most installments carried no information regarding the year of publication. There was one book of reprints, King Aroo, released in 1953, but it can be hard to find, and bookfinder prices range from $30 to $100. The samples shown here are not necessarily in sequence, but at least two are from 1962:

Hayseeds by Harry Hargreaves

David — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:08:09 GMT

In its obituary for Harry Hargreaves (1922-2004), The Independent wrote, "Although he also worked as an illustrator, animator, advertising artist, toy designer and writer, Harry Hargreaves will probably be best remembered as one of the most successful animal cartoonists of his day -- in particular for his creation of the widely syndicated 'The Bird' and 'Hayseeds' features - and as a regular contributor to Punch for 17 years."

Here's almost the start of Hayseeds, which ran from 1968 to 1980. I say "almost the start," because what I have starts with Strip #2. Sigh. (By the way, there were two book collections of the strip.)

Lance by Warren Tufts

David — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 23:21:51 GMT

Warren Tufts (Dec. 12, 1925-July 6, 1982) was a terrific artist specializing in Western comics. His Casey Ruggles newspaper strip began in 1949 with a storyline involving the 1849 Gold Rush, but Tufts left the strip in 1954 in a dispute over ownership of the feature. To conclude his contract, he briefly drew a comedic science-fiction strip, Lone Spaceman, which he demonstrated was capable of syndication but that the syndicate turned down, ending its contract with Tufts. Following that, he began his Lance Western strip as a Sunday full-pager in 1957 and added a daily in 1957.

Tufts experimented with what was possible for the newspaper format. On at least some Sunday strips, he dropped the line art from the illustration. In this sequence of the dailies in 1957, he went from line art to an experimentation with toning.

Jeff Hawke by Sydney Jordan

David — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 23:10:44 GMT

The science-fiction strip ran in England's Daily Express from Feb. 15, 1955, to April 18, 1974. In August, Titan Books released the collection Jeff Hawke: Overlord (ISBN 1845765982). George Hagenauer has commented on how to solve dating problems with British strips, so I'll note that in this specific era, strip #H-1723 was in the paper dated Oct. 9, 1959. Those with calendar programs can work out when these specific strips were published. (At this point, Jordan's friend William Patterson was scripting the feature and possibly helping to plot the tales, as well.)