Issuu

Roy Thomas’ Jolly-Solly Comics Fanzine

STAN LEE’S “RIGHT-HAND MAN” IN THE 1960s!

SOL 8.95 BRODSKY $

In the USA

AND THE

No.134 July 2015

82658 27763

All characters TM & © Marvel Characters Inc.

MARVEL AGE OF COMICS!

Featuring Marvel Colorist

(& Sol’s Daughter)

JANNA PARKER

Plus: Plus: Remembrances Remembrances By By His His Friends Friends Friends By By His His Friends

JOHN JOHN ROMITA ROMITA STAN STAN LEE LEE HERB HERB TRIMPE TRIMPE STAN STAN GOLDBERG GOLDBERG DAVID DAVID A. A. KRAFT KRAFT ROY ROY THOMAS THOMAS

Edited by ROY THOMAS The first and greatest “hero-zine”—ALL-NEW, focusing on GOLDEN AND SILVER AGE comics and creators with ARTICLES, INTERVIEWS, UNSEEN ART, P.C. Hamerlinck’s FCA [Fawcett Collectors of America], MICHAEL T. GILBERT in Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt, BILL SCHELLY’S Comic Fandom Archive, and more!

EISNER AWARD Winner Best Comics-Related Periodical

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ALTER EGO #125

ALTER EGO #126

DIEDGITIIOTANSL E

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ALTER EGO #122

ALTER EGO #123

ALTER EGO #124

Farewell salute to the COMICS BUYER’S GUIDE! TBG/CBG history and remembrances from ALAN LIGHT, MURRAY BISHOFF, MAGGIE THOMPSON, BRENT FRANKENHOFF, “final” CBG columns by MARK EVANIER, TONY ISABELLA, PETER DAVID, FRED HEMBECK, JOHN LUSTIG, classic art by DON NEWTON, MIKE VOSBURG, JACK KIRBY, MIKE NASSER, plus FCA, Mr. Monster, and more!

DENNY O’NEIL’s Silver Age career at Marvel, Charlton, and DC—aided and abetted by ADAMS, KALUTA, SEKOWSKY, LEE, GIORDANO, THOMAS, SCHWARTZ, APARO, BOYETTE, DILLIN, SWAN, DITKO, et al. Plus, we begin serializing AMY KISTE NYBERG’s groundbreaking book on the history of the Comics Code, FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America), Mr. Monster, BILL SCHELLY and more!

We spotlight HERB TRIMPE’s work on Hulk, Iron Man, S.H.I.E.L.D., Ghost Rider, Ant-Man, Silver Surfer, War of the Worlds, Ka-Zar, even Phantom Eagle, and featuring THE SEVERIN SIBLINGS, LEE, FRIEDRICH, THOMAS, GRAINGER, BUSCEMA, and others, plus more of AMY KISTE NYBERG’s Comics Code history, M. THOMAS INGE on Communism and 1950s comic books, FCA, Mr. Monster, and more!

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ALTER EGO #127

ALTER EGO #128

ALTER EGO #129

Golden Age “Air Wave” artist LEE HARRIS discussed by his son JONATHAN LEVEY to interviewer RICHARD J. ARNDT, with rarely-seen 1940s art treasures (including mysterious, never-published art of an alternate version of DC’s Tarantula)! Plus more of AMY KISTE NYBERG’s exposé on the Comics Code, artist SAL AMENDOLA tells the story of the Academy of Comic Book Arts, FCA, Mr. Monster, and more!

Second big issue on 3-D COMICS OF THE 1950s! KEN QUATTRO looks at the controversy involving JOE KUBERT, NORMAN MAURER, BILL GAINES, and AL FELDSTEIN! Plus more fabulous Captain 3-D by SIMON & KIRBY and MORT MESKIN— 3-D thrills from BOB POWELL, HOWARD NOSTRAND, JAY DISBROW and others— the career of Treasure Chest artist VEE QUINTAL, FCA, Mr. Monster, and more!

1940s WILL EISNER/”BUSY” ARNOLD letters between the creator of The Spirit and his Quality Comics partner, art and artifacts by FINE, CRANDALL, CUIDERA, CARDY, KOTZKY, BLUM, NORDLING, and others! Plus Golden Age MLJ artist JOHN BULTHIUS, more of AMY KISTE NYBERG’s History of the Comics Code, FCA, Mr. Monster, BILL SCHELLY, cover by DANIEL JAMES COX and JASON PAULOS!

CAROL L. TILLEY on Dr. Fredric Wertham’s falsification of his research in the 1950s, featuring art by EVERETT, SHUSTER, PETER, BECK, COSTANZA, WEBB, FELDSTEIN, WILLIAMSON, WOOD, BIRO, and BOB KANE! Plus AMY KISTE NYBERG on the evolution of the Comics Code, FCA, Mr. Monster, BILL SCHELLEY, and a new cover by JASON PAULOS and DANIEL JAMES COX!

Edgar Rice Burroughs adventure heroes in comics! With art by FOSTER, HOGARTH, MANNING, KANE, KUBERT, MORROW, GRELL, THORNE, WEISS, ANDERSON, KALUTA, AMENDOLA, BUSCEMA, MARSH, and YEATES—with analysis by foremost ERB experts! Plus, the 1970s ERB comics company that nearly was, FCA, MR. MONSTER, BILL SCHELLY, and more! Cover by TOM GRINDBERG!

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TwoMorrows. A New Day For Comics Fans!

ALTER EGO #130

ALTER EGO #131

ALTER EGO #132

ALTER EGO #133

CAPTAIN MARVEL headlines a Christmas FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America) Fantasmagoria starring C.C. BECK, OTTO BINDER, MARC SWAYZE—and the FAWCETT FAMILY (presented by P.C. HAMERLINCK)! Plus: Comic book/strip star artist DAN BARRY profiled, MICHAEL T. GILBERT in Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt, BILL SCHELLY on comics fandom history, and more! Cover by C.C. BECK!

GERRY CONWAY interviewed about his work as star Marvel/DC writer in the early ‘70s (from the creation of The Punisher to the death of Gwen Stacy) with art by ROMITA, COLAN, KANE, PLOOG, BUSCEMA, MORROW, TUSKA, ADAMS, SEKOWSKY, the SEVERINS, and others! Plus FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT in Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt, BILL SCHELLY on comics fandom history, and more!

75 YEARS of THE FLASH and GREEN LANTERN (a crossover with BACK ISSUE #80)! INFANTINO, KANE, KUBERT, ELIAS, LAMPERT, HIBBARD, NODELL, HASEN, TOTH, REINMAN, SEKOWSKY, Golden Age JSA and Dr. Mid-Nite artist ARTHUR PEDDY’s stepson interviewed, FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT in Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt, BILL SCHELLY on comics fandom history, and more!

Gentleman JIM MOONEY gets a featurelength spotlight, in an in-depth interview conducted by DR. JEFF McLAUGHLIN— never before published! Featuring plenty of rare and unseen MOONEY ART from Batman & Robin, Supergirl, Spider-Man, Legion of Super-Heroes, Tommy Tomorrow, and others! Plus FCA, Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt, BILL SCHELLY, and more!

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Vol. 3, No. 134 / July 2015 Editor

Roy Thomas

Associate Editors Bill Schelly Jim Amash

Design & Layout

Christopher Day

Consulting Editor John Morrow

FCA Editor

P.C. Hamerlinck J.T. Go (Assoc. Editor)

Contents

Comic Crypt Editor

Special 7-Part Section: “Sol Brodsky—Stan Lee’s ‘Right-Hand Man’”

Editorial Honor Roll

Writer/Editorial: Better Call Sol! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Michael T. Gilbert

Jerry G. Bails (founder) Ronn Foss, Biljo White Mike Friedrich

Roy Thomas recalls his years at Marvel—and around the poker table—with Sol Brodsky.

“Dad Loved Comic Books!” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Marvel colorist Janna Parker (formerly Janice Cohen) remembers Sol Brodsky—her father.

Proofreaders

“Sol Was A Great Company Man” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Cover Artists

A Eulogy By Stan Lee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Rob Smentek William J. Dowlding

John Romita, Sol Brodsky, Jack Kirby, John Buscema, & (perhaps) Carl Burgos

Cover Colorists

Stan Goldberg, et al.

With Special Thanks to:

David Anthony Heidi Amash Kraft Richard J. Arndt Mark Lax Mark Arnold Stan Lee Martin Asbury Alan Light Bob Bailey Jim Ludwig Mike W. Barr Glenn MacKay Sy Barry Nancy Maneely Alberto Becattini Robert Menzies William Biggins Mike Mikulovsky Bill Black Al Milgrom Gary Brodsky John Jackson Miller Robert Brown Frank Motler Bernie Bubnis Mark Muller Rich Buckler Dr. Amy K. Nyberg Susan Burgos Janna Parker Nick Caputo Barry Pearl Shaun Clancy Herb Rogoff Comic Book Plus John Romita (website) Bob Rozakis Jon B. Cooke Scott Rowland Vince Davis Randy Sargent Betty Dobson Alex Saviuk Peter Duxbury Vijah Shah Don Ensign Flo Steinberg Justin Fairfax Tenth Letter of the Jean-Michel Alphabet (website) Ferragatti Dann Thomas Shane Foley Mike Tiefenbacher Brent Frankenhoff Herb Trimpe Stephan Friedt Gerry Turnbull Bob Fujitani Dr. Michael J. Janet Gilbert Vassallo Stan Goldberg George E. Warner Grand Comics Database (website) Who’s Who of American Comic Dan Hagen Books 1928-1999 Phil Hurd (website) Dr. M. Thomas Inge Steven Willis Jim Kealy

This issue is dedicated to the memory of

Sol Brodsky & Stan Goldberg

The late Stan Goldberg on “Jolly Solly,” a fellow Timely/Atlas/Marvel alumnus. Sol's boss, collaborator, and friend wrote these words in 1984.

A Few Choice Words On Sol Brodsky . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 John Romita salutes Marvel’s production manager… “Stan Lee’s top sergeant.”

“We Need A Lot More Guys Like Him” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Herb Trimpe says that the watchword of “Solly B.” was: “Deadlines, deadlines, deadlines.”

For The Love Of Sol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Writer David Anthony Kraft worked with Sol Brodsky at Marvel—and at Skywald.

Seal Of Approval: The History Of The Comics Code . . . . . . 40 Continuing Dr. Amy Kiste Nyberg’s 1998 book. This time: the updating of the Code, 1971.

Dan Barry & Flash Gordon – Part III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Continuing Alberto Becattini’s study of a controversial comic art talent.

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt! “Get A Clue! ” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Michael T. Gilbert spotlights the weirdly humorous covers of Hillman’s crime comics.

Comic Fandom Archive: The Super Labors Of Love . . . . . . 61 Bill Schelly’s tribute to G.B. Love and RBCC—part 2.

In Memoriam: Stan Goldberg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 re: [correspondence, comments, & corrections] . . . . . . . . . 69 FCA [Fawcett Collectors Of America] #193 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 P.C. Hamerlinck presents Otto Binder’s final chapter—and Captain Marvel Jr. in France!

On Our Cover: Easily the most-often reproduced portrait of artist and production man Sol Brodsky is the masterful illustration drawn by John Romita for the cover of Marvel Age #22 (Jan. 1985), of which much more in this issue. It’s flanked here by cover art either penciled, inked, or both, by Brodsky: Fantastic Four #3-4 (March & May ’62) & Tales to Astonish #38 (Dec. ’62), all three of which he inked over pencils by Jack Kirby… Sub-Mariner #1 (May ’68), inked over John Buscema’s pencils… Astonishing #23 (March ’53), penciled by Sol and (maybe) inked by Carl Burgos… and Kid Colt Outlaw #28 (June ’53), penciled (and perhaps inked) by Sol. See most of these covers bigger and better in the pages that follow! [All art TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.] Above: The final panel of the first episode of the Holyoke hero-feature “The Red Cross,” bylined “by Charles Nicholas & Sol Brodsky.” It’s from Captain Aero Comics #8 (Sept. 1942). Thanks to the Comic Book Plus website. [© the respective copyright holders.]

Alter EgoTM is published 8 times a year by TwoMorrows, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614, USA. Phone: (919) 449-0344. Roy Thomas, Editor. John Morrow, Publisher. Alter Ego Editorial Offices: 32 Bluebird Trail, St. Matthews, SC 29135, USA. Fax: (803) 826-6501; e-mail: roydann@ntinet.com. Send subscription funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial offices. Eight-issue subscriptions: $67 US, $85 Canada, $104 elsewhere. All characters are © their respective companies. All material © their creators unless otherwise noted. All editorial matter © Roy Thomas. Alter Ego is a TM of Roy & Dann Thomas. FCA is a TM of P.C. Hamerlinck. Printed in China. ISSN: 1932-6890. FIRST PRINTING.

SOL BRODSKY — Stan Lee’s “Right-Hand Man” — Part I

writer/editorial

Better Call Sol! S

ol Brodsky was the second person I ever met at Marvel Comics.

by Roy Thomas

The first, over a Wednesday noontime in early July of 1965, was “Fabulous Flo” Steinberg, Stan Lee’s corresponding secretary. She came out from the inner offices to hand me the Marvel “writing test” that Lee had invited me (by phone) to have a go at, to wish me well with a smile, and to send me on my way.

The next day, when I showed up with the ballooned artwork and the dialogue I’d written for the four Photostatted pages of Jack Kirby Fantastic Four action, a fortyish man with shortish curly black hair and an equally ready smile came out to collect them. I don’t recall if Sol told me his name. I do remember him asking me, in a friendly manner, how it had gone. I said something noncommittal like “All right, I guess,” he said a polite goodbye and popped back inside. And I hotfooted it back the relatively few blocks from Madison Avenue to Lexington Avenue, stopping just long enough, in all probability, to gobble down a Nedick’s hot dog near the latter premises, where my present DC bosses (of nearly two whole weeks’ standing) held sway.

Not Together Again For The First Time! If there’s a photo in existence of Sol Brodsky and Roy Thomas together at any time, A/E’s editor would love to know about it! In the meantime, we’ll have to settle for a circa-1965 snapshot of Roy and Flo Steinberg, at the latter’s desk… and the pic of Sol from the 1975 Mighty Marvel Comic Convention program book. Here he’s doing what he did a lot of, which was talk on the phone to artists, writers, engravers, et al. [Brodsky photo © Marvel Characters, Inc.]

The next day, after Flo had furtively phoned me at DC and I’d once more nooned it over to Marvel and, to my great delight, been hired by Stan Lee ten or fifteen minutes after I met him, Stan took me out into the adjoining office—well, either then, or more likely a bit later in the afternoon when I returned, having been kicked out of DC by “Superman” editor Mort Weisinger—to introduce me more formally to Flo and Sol. From that moment on, Sol Brodsky loomed very large in my professional life for the next half decade… and our association, which became a friendship of sorts and, I think, a relationship of mutual respect, lasted at least until I moved west to California in mid-1976.

For Sol was the guy who made the Marvel trains run on time… greased with a combination of winning smiles and disapproving frowns. Gerry Conway mentioned, in his interview in A/E #131, that neither Stan nor I really acted as “managers” during the days he knew us at Marvel. If that’s true, and I suppose it is, in its way, it’s at least partly because Sol Brodsky, as production manager, kept all the balls in the air—handled virtually all the scheduling, the trafficking, the haranguing of late artists and writers—so that Stan didn’t have to. And when Sol moved on in 1970 to co-found Skywald, his successor John Verpoorten, whom Sol had trained for the task, carried on with those efforts, first for Stan, later for me (and after me, for Gerry, Len Wein, Marv Wolfman, and Archie Goodwin). That freed the editors to concentrate on the creative side of things—matters about which Sol doubtless had an opinion from time to time, but which he rarely deigned to share with his co-workers.

As the over-all title of the seven reminiscences by a few of Sol’s colleagues in this issue, I chose “Sol Brodsky – Stan Lee’s ‘RightHand Man.’” That’s because, as I’ve often related, for the first several years of my tenure at Marvel, Stan would call both of us

into his office most mornings we were all there, and he would go over, often in great detail, whatever needed to be said about some script he (or I) might have written… or completed artwork that he had critiqued or proofread. For me, it was an ongoing lesson in writing and editing from a true master at the top of his form… for Sol, much (but not nearly all) of the workload he’d be dealing with on that particular day. Only partly because that’s where we invariably stood in relation to him at the podium where he placed the artwork day after day, Stan, on at least one occasion—maybe more—mock-seriously referred to Sol as his “right-hand man” and me as his “left-hand man.” Or, sometimes, Sol was his “good right arm,” and I was the other one. And that’s just what Sol Brodsky was for Stan, from at least 1964 and for most of the next two decades. (Elsewhere in this issue, you'll find Sol’s daughter Janna and artist/colorist Stan Goldberg using the same “right-hand man” phrase.) The thing I remember most about Sol in those early days— which commenced when I was 24 and he was 42—is that, most days of the workweek, we went out to lunch together. Usually five days a week at first, a bit less often after I finagled the ability to write at my apartment two (or sometimes three) days a week. Sol initiated the practice by inviting me to accompany him, and thereafter it quickly came to be assumed that we’d lunch together unless one of us had prior plans. On quite a few occasions we were joined by the likes of Stan Goldberg (colorist and Millie the Model artist), John Romita (who returned to the bullpen about two weeks after I began there), sometimes one or two others. Stan— and even Jack Kirby, if he happened to be “in town” that day— joined us from time to time, but those were usually higher-end confabs, held at Schrafft’s restaurant or some such watering-hole. Sol and I tended to opt for a diner around the corner, or occasionally a hot-dog joint or less expensive restaurant. Sure, to some extent Sol was shoring up his own situation with a guy who, as Stan’s editorial assistant, might be expected to rise in the

Better Call Sol!

company… just as I was not averse to schmoozing with the production manager, who still ranked me, insofar as there were ranks in those early days. But mostly, I think we just enjoyed each other’s company.

Our lunchtime conversations during those several years? I’ll be damned if I can remember! A lot of shop talk, I’m sure—and sometimes he’d quiz me about my past life as a high school English teacher or comics fan. I had a few questions for him, too, once I realized he’d been a working artist for much of his life, until, a year or so before I arrived, Marvel had become successful enough to hire a full-time production manager again. (Before then, he had been handling much of that work on a freelance basis.)

Sometime in the first few weeks after I came to Marvel, Sol invited me to dinner at his home, in an apartment building in Brooklyn, near Coney Island. He and his wife Selma were splendid hosts… I presume his son Gary and daughter Janice may have been there, but I just don’t recall. All I really remember is that, somehow, callow youth that I was, it never occurred to me to reciprocate by inviting them out to dinner, either in Brooklyn or in Manhattan. I’ll forever owe them both that dinner. I remember once—though this happened, I think, in the offices rather than over lunch—Sol abruptly asked me if I’d ever heard of a comic book hero called The Red Cross. When I told him yes, that I believed he’d been in Captain Aero Comics, and that I’d read one or two of his stories, Sol smiled broadly. I forget the exact wording of his response—whether he said the exact words “I created that one” or not, I don’t recall—but that was the gist of it. So when I see credits that assume the words “by Charles Nicholas & Sol Brodsky” on the first three “Red Cross” adventures mean merely that Sol inked the yarns, I don’t believe it. Though, sadly, I didn’t ask him to elaborate, Sol must’ve done more than simply apply inks to someone else’s pencils on that strip, or he wouldn’t have said what he said.

On another occasion, Sol dropped into the conversation the tidbit that he had designed the Fantastic Four logo, saying it was based on a style of lettering that was popular in advertising around 1961. (Used, no doubt, by Don Draper and his Mad Men cohorts.) I don’t recall my asking, or his volunteering, what he might’ve had to do with any other early hero logos. And, oddly, I don’t recall his ever mentioning the fact—which would’ve been of interest to me, certainly—that he had inked the covers and stories in F.F. #3 & 4. And that means I never thought to ask him who had inked #1 & 2. (I’ll bet he’d have known, too! His words might have been the clincher that could make us stop putting the word “probably” before statements that George Klein embellished those first two outings.)

Sol and I made a few minor shopping excursions over those lunch hours, too. Around 1966, there was a fad in Manhattan for wearing Russian hats—you know, those things that look like a black, tailless beaver has leaped onto your head. We each bought one, ’cause New York winters are cold. Sol also got a kick out of the fact that, for a time, I wore a pair of alligator shoes—this in an era, of course, before they became associated with the attire of pimps, let alone constituted a threat to an endangered species. When I spoke with Sol’s son, Gary, as a run-up to this issue, Gary brought up the matter of those shoes, and said Sol had found them quite amusing. (Of what he thought of the Nehru jacket and matching pants and goatee I acquired circa 1968, there seems to be, thankfully, no extant record.) And, for a little while after one luncheon shared by Sol,

Stan, and myself, the three of us took to smoking small cigars with filter tips. “Cigarillos,” were they called? Anyway, I doubt if any of the three of us ever inhaled… and that interlude didn’t last long.

One noon, Sol told me he had to stop by the bank, and I accompanied him. This wasn’t Friday, when Marvel generally disbursed our checks before lunchtime, so I was curious. He (meaning we) had to stand in line for maybe 15 minutes of our 60-minute lunch break, and while we were “on line,” as New Yorkers put it, he revealed that he was there because of the discrepancy of something like 80¢ between the amount of money the bank said was in the Brodskys’ checking account and the amount of money that Selma Brodsky thought was in said account. Sol was philosophical about going to so much trouble over so little: it kept his wife happy, and that was that.

Sol used the friendliness that, I think, was a natural part of him in his day-to-day handling of writers, artists, and production people. When he started off a sentence with “Will you do me a favor?,” it was invariably not a real “favor” he was about to ask for, but something he’d like you to do as a part of your job. Sometimes they were things he would’ve had every right simply to politely ask you to do, with every expectation that you’d do it… but he preferred the velvet glove approach, and it got him results. The only time I can recall refusing to do something Sol suggested occurred only a few months into my job, when I was asked, in essence, to fire someone from a staff job… someone I had recommended for it. I told Sol that I clearly didn’t have hiring and firing authority, and it wasn’t my decision—it was, of course, Stan’s— and that I really did not want to do it. Instead of trying to argue me into it, or getting pushy about it, Sol nodded, said he totally

The WHO’S WHO of American Comic Books 1928-1999 Online Edition Created by Jerry G. Bails FREE – online searchable database – FREE www.bailsprojects.com – No password required

This emblematic World War II panel “by Charles Nicholas & Sol Brodsky” is from the origin of “The Red Cross,” in Holyoke's Captain Aero Comics #9 (Nov. 1942). Who wrote or drew what in the story is uncertain. Thanks to Jim Kealy & Comic Book Plus. [© the respective copyright holders.]

Writer/Editorial

“Look, Sol,” I said, “the point isn’t that I’ll write this much or I’ll edit that much. To me, the whole point is the $50,000. That’s what I want… that’s all I’ll accept. I’ll write a little more for the money, if Stan and Galton really think I need to… but if the monetary offer isn’t $50,000… even if it’s $49,999… I’ll walk away. Period.” Sol put away his pencil and paper. He accepted that I wasn’t bluffing, wasn’t maneuvering. So we enjoyed our lunch and didn’t discuss the salary again. (Of course, as it happened, I wound up moving to Los Angeles instead of going back to that job… but before I did, Marvel had accepted my terms. I don’t think they even asked me to do anything more for the money. Sol had made them understand.) I wish to God that I’d stayed in closer touch with Sol after 1970… even after 1976. But we were both very busy in those days… the once-a-month dinners and poker games gave us just enough inter-face time through mid-’76 to keep our relationship alive… and we didn’t really have too much in common, anyway. We just… got along.

I was genuinely saddened, as well as surprised, when I heard, out in California in 1984, that Sol had passed away. Like most people, I hadn’t known anything about the sudden deterioration of his health. I was glad when Marvel took a goodly portion of the 22nd issue of its self-produced promotional magazine, Marvel Age, to celebrate his life and career. After all, it wasn’t like he was an artist or writer whose name was instantly recognizable to most Marvel readers; the company didn’t have that much to gain, really, by having John Romita draw an excellent likeness of Sol and making that the cover of the issue. But it was a recognition that not all the people important to a company’s success are in the creative end… any more than they’re all at the very topmost executive levels. After his return to Marvel, Sol was, despite his Vice-

Presidential status, at some vague mid-point between those two extremes—and, because of his background as a co-publisher as well as an artist, writer, and production man, was able to talk with authority to both levels. And he used those abilities, those skills, to do good work. He richly deserved that cover spot. He was a good man… and I never think about him without wishing he were still around to talk to… and to play poker with. Bestest,

P.S.: I very much regret that, after initially agreeing to be interviewed for this issue (and being advertised as such), Sol’s son Gary then elected to become incommunicado by either phone or e-mail. I’ve no idea why. But anytime he changes his mind, I’ll run yet another interview about Sol Brodsky. Meanwhile, it has meant a lot to me that his daughter Janice (now Janna Parker) talked with Richard Arndt for this tribute issue, and that Stan Goldberg and Herb Trimpe, not long before their own untimely passings, also shared their thoughts for this edition. The briefer comments of John Romita and Dave Kraft are also appreciated, as is Stan Lee’s permission to reprint the short elegy he wrote in 1984 to be read at Sol’s funeral. We all miss Sol, and we always will. And now we miss Stan G. and Herb T., as well. P.P.S.: Also—with this issue, because of my own considerable commitments, publisher John Morrow and I have reluctantly agreed to decrease the frequency of Alter Ego from eight to seven issues per year, for the immediate future. A/E #135 will come out in August… #136 in October… and #137 in December. And next year? We’ll see how it goes. Me, I’m still hoping to return to eight times a year… just like all those DC “monthlies” of a few decades back!

COMING IN AUGUST LEN WEIN

114

—OFF & RUNNING!

The Co-Creator Of Swamp Thing & Wolverine Talks About His Early Years At DC & Marvel! • Classic Justice League of America cover by DICK GIORDANO—with BERNIE WRIGHTSON’s Swamp Thing tossed in! • LEN WEIN tells RICHARD J. ARNDT about the late ’60s and the first half of the ’70s in the comic book writing-and-editing biz—which includes the above plus Teen Titans, The Human Target, The [New] X-Men, The Incredible Hulk, Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man, Batman, etc. Featuring awesome art by WRIGHTSON • CARDY • ADAMS • TRIMPE • APARO • INFANTINO • HEATH • SIMONSON • NOVICK • THORNE • WEISS • KALUTA • the SEVERIN Siblings • MAROTO • BUSCEMA, et al.! • More of AMY K. NYBERG’s Comics Code history & ALBERTO BECATTINI’s artbiography of DAN BARRY! • Plus FCA—MICHAEL T. GILBERT with more of those crazy Hillman crime covers— Art TM & © DC Comics BILL SCHELLY carries on the story of G.B. Love and RBCC—& MORE!! Edited by ROY THOMAS • SUBSCRIBE NOW! Eight issues in the US: $67 Standard, $82 First Class • (Canada: $85, Elsewhere: $104 Surface, $242 Airmail). • NEW LOWER RATES FOR INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMERS! SAVE $4 PER ISSUE!

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SOL BRODSKY — Stan Lee’s “Right-Hand Man” — Part II

“Dad Loved Comic Books!”

SOL BRODSKY Remembered By Daughter JANNA PARKER, aka JANICE COHEN Interview Conducted & Transcribed by Richard J. Arndt NTERVIEWER’S INTRODUCTION: Janna (aka Leorah Sky) Parker was born Janice Brodsky, daughter of artist Sol Brodsky. She has worked as a colorist for Marvel, First, Topps, Eclipse, Mirage, Pacific, and Disney. She has also worked as an actress, on both stage and screen. Today she is the colorist for the Spider-Man Sunday newspaper strip, paints acrylic abstracts, and does commissioned interpretive drawings for individuals. The signature “Leorahsky” used on the interpretive drawings is a tribute to both of her parents—the “sky,” of course, referring to her father and the Leorah a tip of the hat to her mother.

Looks Like Kid Colt Could Use The Red Cross! Sol Brodsky from Marvel Tales Annual #1 (1964)—framed by comic book work he drew more than twenty years apart: the “Red Cross” feature he co-created with Charles Nicholas, seen here in its second outing from Holyoke’s Captain Aero #9 (Nov. 1942), though precisely who did what on it, including scripting, is unknown… and Sol’s dynamic cover for Kid Colt Outlaw #28 (March 1963); inker uncertain. Thanks for the art scans to the Comic Book Plus website and Steven Willis, respectively. [Kid Colt cover TM & © Marvel Characters, inc.; Red Cross page © the respective copyright holders.]

RICHARD ARNDT: First, I’d like to say thank you for the interview. I’d like to start off by finding out what you know about your dad’s early life.

JANNA PARKER: Thank you for the chance to talk about my dad. Dad was born on April 22, 1923. He grew up in Brooklyn. That’s where he met my mom. Brooklyn’s what he always talked about. Dad was the eldest in the family. Then came Fay, my absolute favorite aunt. Next was Leonard. He’s passed away. Then, ten or thirteen years later, came Ted. He’s still living and we talk on Facebook.

RA: Would you happen to know the school your dad attended in Brooklyn?

PARKER: That would be Pratt Institute in Queens, where he studied art.

RA: You mentioned he met your mother in Brooklyn. Do you happen to know the story behind that?

PARKER: I do. He met her at a dance. She had gone to it alone. She was checking in with her mom, standing in a phone booth, and he made the motion at her—“Do you want to dance?”—from outside the phone booth. So they danced and they obviously hit it off very well. That’s interesting, because my father and mother, who’s also now passed on, were very, What’s In A Name? very different types of people. I guess they (Far left:) Marvel colorist balanced each other. At home, my dad was really Janice Cohen, nee Janice quiet. A very quiet person.

Brodsky, as per the rogues’ gallery of staff photos in the 1975 Mighty Marvel Comic Convention program book. (Left:) Janna Parker today. Courtesy of JP.

He worked a lot at home when I was little. I remember his desk covered with Big Boy artwork. He worked on the promo comics that Big Boy used in their restaurants. That’s imprinted in my brain. Dad was introverted. My mom, on the

Sol Brodsky Remembered By Daughter Janna Parker, aka Janice Cohen

Sports Action (p)(i) 1952; Spy Cases (p)(i) 1951-52; Spy Fighters (p)(i) 1951; Strange Stories of Suspense (p)(i) 1955-57; Strange Tales of the Unusual (p)(i) 1956-57; Strange Tales (i) 1959, 1963 – logo design c. 1959, (p)(i) 1951-56; support (e) 1953-54 Crazy; support (prod) 1954-71, 1973-84; support (VP Special Operations) 1973-84; Suspense (p)(i) 1951-53; Tales of Justice (p)(i) 1956; Tales of Suspense (logo design) 1959, (p)(i) 1963; Tales of the Watcher (i) 1964; Tales to Astonish (logo design) 1959, (i) 1963; TwoGun Kid (w)(p)(i) 1967; Uncanny Tales (p)(i) 1952-57; various features (p)(i) 1942; War Action (p)(i) 1952-53; War Adventures (p)(i) 1952; War Comics (p)(i) 1951-52; The Wasp (i) 1965; The Wasp Tells a Tale (i) 1964; World of Fantasy (p)(i) 1956; World of Mystery (p)(i) 1956-57; World of Suspense (p)(i) 1952; Wyatt Earp (p)(i) 1958

Rural Home Publishing: Blue Circle (p)(i) 1944-45; Variety (p)(i) 1946 Sywald Publications: (e) & co-publisher 1970-72 Victory Comics: X-Venture (p)(i) 1947

Clothes Make The Team? The cover of Fantastic Four #3 (March 1962) was penciled by Jack Kirby, inked by Sol Brodsky, colored by Stan Goldberg, and commissioned by editor/writer Stan Lee—and was the first glimpse readers ever got of the group’s new costumes. So what if the Torch was drawn with two left hands? The page from the interior, by the same quartet, recounts the team’s origin from the first issue. Thanks to Barry Pearl for the latter scan. [TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.]

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NOTE: This volume had been temporarily delayed, but has now been published out of order.

SOL BRODSKY — Stan Lee’s “Right-Hand Man” — Part III

“Sol Was A Great Company Man” STAN GOLDBERG Remembers SOL BRODSKY Interview Conducted & Transcribed by Richard J. Arndt NTERVIEWER’S INTRODUCTION: Stan Goldberg, who regrettably passed away in 2013, not long after this interview was conducted, was a veteran of the Timely, Atlas, and Marvel bullpens from the late 1940s to the 1970s. He worked for Marvel again in the 1980s. In the 1950s he was the head of the coloring department at Timely/Atlas. Between 1961 and 1965 he colored practically all the Marvel comics, as well as drawing all the Mille the Model titles. He was also one of the two main artists (the other being Dan DeCarlo) at Archie Comics between 1968 and 2010. Up till near the end of his life he was an active artist, drawing, among other projects, Nancy Drew for Papercutz. A tribute to Stan Goldberg begins on p. 66 of this issue… but meanwhile, let’s enjoy the reminiscences and information he has to give us….

Starkman. When that bullpen broke up in 1958, a lot of those guys went over to DC Comics and both of them went to work there. Stan Starkman was on a freelance basis and Joe Leterese was on a staff job at DC. Anyway, that first day I arrived, they pulled the guys apart, and I thought to myself “Geez, I’m going to be working with these guys in this room!”

RICHARD ARNDT: First off, thanks for agreeing to this interview. It was very nice of you. STAN GOLDBERG: Well, Richard, I’m always happy to talk about my pal, Sol Brodsky. There’s so many things I’d like to say about him. He was my boss. He was my friend. He helped me out a lot. Socially we were good friends. RA: How long did you know Sol?

A Fantastic Foursome

We played cards every lunch hour. We played with two decks because we only had an hour, so one deck was used in the game and the other one was being shuffled for the next hand. Sol was a big card player all his life. Those card games became a regular thing. When we quit playing in the bullpen, we kept on in somebody’s home. There was a once-a-month card game at Roy Thomas’ [apartment] in the 1970s, or maybe it would be at the house of one of Stan’s assistants for many years, Al Sulman. We had that card game for many years, until 1984.

Inker Sol Brodsky and colorist Stan Goldberg flank the published cover for Fantastic Four #4 (May 1962), to which both longtime Timely/Atlas/Marvel artisans contributed—along with all-important penciler Jack Kirby, of course, while editor Stan Lee may well have contributed the initial concept, as he often did. Brodsky and Goldberg were friends as well as colleagues for many decades. Their photos come from the 1969 F.F. Annual. The descriptions printed there beneath the photos were, A/E’s editor believes, written by him, though Stan Lee may later have altered one or two. [TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.]

GOLDBERG: I’ve been thinking about Sol these last few days, knowing I was going to talk about him tonight. I met him in the first bullpen of Timely Comics in the 1950s, where I spent about eight years. For a good part of those eight years, Sol and I worked together. There were probably 12 to 15 people working there at that time. I was a kid there, but I was running the coloring department. I had a corner of the room. Sol was maybe ten years older than me. He had the middle of the room with his drawing board. The coloring department—we didn’t need drawing boards. I just had a big table with a big bunch of my Dr. Martins, the dye and the inks, a lot of other stuff. The first time I came into the bullpen, there was a big fight going on. Two of the letterers were beating each other up in the back of the room. One of them was Joe Leterese, and the other Stan

Back to Sol: I knew him as an artist first off, then as a production man later on. It’s the production guy that people remember, because he gave up drawing completely. Well, he might draw up something if he wanted me to see what he was thinking, and he could do that very well because he was an artist, but he quit drawing for publication. I spent a lot of time with Sol. All in all, though, socially and in business we were good friends. We played cards with a whole bunch of guys in the bullpen. Those card games were a regular thing and lasted some thirty years!

I remember one time Stan Lee came in from his office, which was right next to ours, and I think he was kidding around— playing the big editor, and he put his hands on his hips. We all looked up at him and we saw a kind of smile coming on his face. Now, Stan knew exactly who was doing what and if we were on schedule, because we were putting out fifty books a month with corrections and lettering and proofreading and coloring. A lot of stuff, but we had a great bunch of guys—all professionals— working in that room to do all that. You can’t do all that unless

SOL BRODSKY — Stan Lee’s “Right-Hand Man” — Part VI

“We Need A Lot More Guys Like Him” A Brief Reminiscence Of SOL BRODSKY by Herb Trimpe

ol was great because he was from the old world of publishing. Deadlines, deadlines, deadlines.

True, an artist, as well, but he was the iconic office manager when it came to getting the job done. Sol was also the first person I came into contact with at Marvel. I’m not counting John Verpoorten, as I had known him from our time at the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. I was hired by Sol on the spot. I’m not sure he ever conferred with Stan. When I showed him my “portfolio,” there wasn’t any recent artwork in it all, just stuff I had dug up from samples I had done while in school—at the suggestion of John V.

Kid-ding Around Herb Trimpe, in a recent photo—and the splash page of one of the earliest stories he ever drew for Marvel: a tale from Kid Colt Outlaw #135 (July 1967) that was scripted by none other than Sol Brodsky. Thanks to Nick Caputo for the art scan. [Page TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc.]

In the interim between school and Marvel, I had spent four years in the Air Force, so you might say my art was pretty stale at that point. I had been to DC first, as they were top-dog in the mid-’60s, although by then Marvel was breathing down their necks. I had no luck at DC, but Sol gave me inking work immediately. Working in the production department at Marvel to begin with, as well as the inking work, I ran a Photostat copy machine. Sol always had priority when he had a request. He was a stickler for “I need a copy of this, and I need it right now.” Never in a mean or crude way, but all business. This may have rubbed some people the wrong way, but it was a tough job and somebody had to do it. Sol was the consummate professional and the kind of guy you’d want working for you if you were in the publishing business—or any business, for that matter. He should have been cloned, because we need a lot more guys like him around these days—and he was a pretty damned good artist, at that. Herb Trimpe was an artist for Marvel Comics from 1967 through much of the 1990s. He is most noted for his work on The Incredible Hulk (a long run), Godzilla, G.I. Joe, Fantastic Four Unlimited, and numerous other series. He was also the first artist to draw The Wolverine in a comic book story. Sadly, Herb passed away unexpectedly on April 13 of this year, just before this issue of Alter Ego went to press. We'll pay proper tribute to him in a near-future issue.

SOL BRODSKY — Stan Lee’s “Right-Hand Man” — Part VII

For The Love Of Sol

A Brief Remembrance Of SOL BRODSKY by David Anthony Kraft

omics of every kind—I’ve loved them all.

Marvel in the ’60s, natch. And DC. And ACG. And Warren monster comic mags, from the first issues of Creepy and Eerie to Vampirella. And so, into the ’70s, and the exciting advent of Skywald comic magazines, of course. Psycho. Nightmare. Hell-Rider.

The, to me, especially exciting return of—The Heap! Don’t know what it is about misunderstood man-monsters, but I loved The Incredible Hulk from issue #1, and glommed onto the shambling Swamp Thing from the start, much later getting the dubious distinction of scripting #24, the last issue of the original series.

However, at the time, I was still a barbarian in the frozen northlands near the Canada and Montana territories. Being young and brash, and with the confidence of youth and my first science-fiction sale to Amazing Stories, I cold-called Skywald one day and put forward the notion that I should be writing “The Heap” stories. The man on the other end of the conversation turned out to be none other than Sol Brodsky (the Sky in Skywald, as I later learned).

That he took the call, and took me seriously, was more of a wonder than I might have realized back then. He had a slight New York accent, listened to what I had to say, asked a polite question or three, and then acquainted me with my first glimpse into the inner workings of comics: “The Heap” already had a regular writer and the assignment was his as long as he wanted it.

But I was welcome to submit some horror story ideas, and if any struck his fancy, he’d give me the go-ahead to write the script. Elated, I jumped at the opportunity—and rapidly discovered that the short horror story was not my forte. It’s much more difficult than it looks to put plot and character into 5 or 6 pages. Will Eisner, a master if ever there was one, had an affinity for it, and most of his Spirit short stories are awesome in what they achieve in a few pages of carefully composed dialogue, plot, and art.

A Psycho-logical Deduction A “Heap” for the ’70s made his/its debut in the first issue of Skywald’s black-&-white horror comic Psycho (coverdated March 1971), behind a cover painted by Hector Varella. As soon as he saw the character, Dave Kraft decided he should be the guy writing it! [© the respective copyright holders.]

Our Cast Of (Marvel) Characters (Above:) “Stan the Man and Dave the Dude”—that’s the cutline that appeared under this photo in Marvel’s self-produced fan-club FOOM Magazine #17 (March 1977), wherein Dave interviewed Stan. Dave never really fit the Madison Avenue image! (Left:) Sol Brodsky is reported to have drawn this self-portrait (not the best likeness) for the Famous Cartoonist button series circa 1975. They were distributed by the Krupp Comic Works & Phil Seuling. [© the respective copyright holders.]

I did the best I could, and sent off a sheaf of ideas to Skywald.

And, in those delayed-gratification days before the advent of instantaneous e-mail, I eagerly awaited the mail every day until, at last, an envelope arrived from New York. Every bit as expectant as anyone awaiting the opening of a portentous envelope on Oscar night, I scanned the letter. My fate was sealed.

Sol liked one of the plots. My career in comics was launched. The resulting story, “Kerene,” appeared in Psycho #7. And the rest, as they say, is history. Well, not quite.

It should be noted, from my point of view, that opportunity had opened as a direct result of my authorial acumen. I suspect in hindsight that, while Sol no doubt took some small pleasure in helping an aspiring writer at a great disadvantage and distance from the New York mecca of comics publishing, the $5 page rate he paid also played no small part. From what he told me years later about his last days at Skywald, he was lucky not to lose his investment and relieved to get out of his adventure into publishing with a shirt still on his back. I sent in some more plots, got another sale, but just as I was starting to get into the swing of things, unbeknown to me, Sol was getting out. Premises languished, time passed, I got no response. Eventually, Al Hewetson emerged as editor, but appeared to have no further interest in my efforts, and the Skywald connection closed.

A couple years later, some Rascally fellow named Roy invited me to join the Marvel Bullpen as his assistant editor. I roared into town on a motorcycle, all tangled long hair and beard, to begin the best years of my life in comics. Didn’t know a soul in New York City. Or so I thought.

Dr. Amy K. Nyberg

A/E

Seal Of Approval: The History Of The Comics Code Continuing Chapter 6 Of Our Serialization Of The 1998 Study By DR. AMY KISTE NYBERG

EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION: We near the conclusion of our reprinting of Dr. Nyberg’s groundbreaking history of comic book censorship—a work we’ve felt honored to be able to re-present, with a wealth of added illustrations, for Alter Ego’s audience. Previous installments have appered in A/E #123-128, 130, & 133. As we’ve said before, Seal of Approval is “footnoted” in the MLA style which lists book, article, or author name, plus page numbers, between parentheses in the main text: e.g., “(Hart 154-156)” refers to pp. 154-156 of whichever work by an author or editor named Hart appears in the bibliography (which will be printed at the conclusion of our serialization, a few issues from now). When the parentheses contain only page numbers, it’s because the other pertinent information is printed in the text almost immediately preceding the note.

We’ve again retained such usages and spellings from Nyberg’s book as “superhero,” an uncapitalized “comics code,” “E.C.” and “DC,” etc. In the captions we ourselves have added, however, we have reverted to A/E house style and preference. These captions, of course, do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Dr. Nyberg or of the University Press of Mississippi, the original publisher of the book—the original edition of which can still be obtained from UPM at www.upress.sate.ms.us. Our thanks once again to Dr. M. Thomas Inge, under whose general editorship the volume was originally published in 1998 as part of its Studies in Popular Culture series, and who was of great help to A/E in helping to arrange for its reprinting here… to William Biggins and Vijah Shah, acquisitions editors past and present at the U. Press of Mississippi… and to Brian K. Morris for retyping the text on a Word document for Ye Editor.

t was Marvel Comics, not DC, that broke new ground by producing a mainstream comic book dealing with drugs, publishing and distributing the comic without code approval. By doing so, Marvel Comics forced the Comics Magazine Association to reevaluate the comics code that had been in effect with no changes since 1954. The comic was [The Amazing] SpiderMan, a top-selling Marvel title. Stan Lee, Marvel’s editor-in-chief, received a letter from the Department of Health, Education and Welfare asking the company to do a Spider-Man story about the dangers of drugs. In a three-issue story, Spider-Man learns that his college roommate is a drug addict. Because the comics code forbade any mention of narcotics or their use, the story did not get code approval, but Marvel decided to publish the story anyway. Lee recalls that the story got favorable press nationwide, “and because of that, the Code was changed” (Daniels Five Fabulous Decades 152).

meantime, the Code Administration’s ruling that no stories shall deal with narcotics addiction shall remain in effect” (CMAA Files [minutes, 9 June 1970]). Work on code revisions began immediately, and the association’s board of directors reviewed specific provisions in a special meeting called December 7, 1970, for that purpose. The president of the association, John Goldwater, noted that he had always taken the position that if times and circumstances warranted it, changes in the code should be considered and made. He added: “However, such changes should be carefully considered, so that the self-regulation program, which has served the industry effectively for more than

Recent segments dealt with the first fifteen years of operations under the Comics Code, which was adopted on October 26, 1954….

The publishers apparently considered Marvel’s request that the company be allowed to publish their special Spider-Man stories at a meeting in June 1970. This request led to a discussion of whether the time had come to change A Drug On The Market the code, a discussion led by National’s represenGil Kane’s cover for The Amazing Spider-Man tative, Carmine Infantino. The minutes of the meeting #96 (May 1971), the first of the three sostated: “It was decided each publisher, after discuscalled “drug issues” that were published sions with his editorial staff, should prepare any without the Comics Code seal—and which led suggested revisions he saw fit, and these should be directly to the first rewriting of the Code. submitted to the Board for its consideration at a The scripter and editor of the story within subsequent meeting.” However, the board rejected was Stan Lee. Photos of Kane have been seen in recent issues of A/E—and will be, again! Marvel’s request with this statement: “In the [© Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Continuing Chapter 6 Of Our Serialization Of The 1998 Study By Dr. Amy Kiste Nyberg

Needling The Code Under the revised (1971) Comics Code, DC wound up publishing its own harderhitting “drug story” in Green Lantern #84-85, written by Denny O’Neil, with pencils by Neal Adams and inks by Dick Giordano— and it was printed with the Code seal. Seen at left is Adams’ cover for GL #85 (Oct.-Nov. ’71.) [© DC Comics.]

sixteen years, should not become ineffective” (CMAA Files [minutes, 7 Dec. 1970]).

Revisions were discussed and approved for most of the text of the code at that December meeting, and the publishers agreed that the new code would go into effect February 1, 1971 (see CMAA Code 1971). Many of the restrictions on the presentation of crime and horror were liberalized. Ghouls, vampires, and werewolves, which were prohibited under the original code, would now be allowed as long as they were “handled in the classic tradition such as Frankenstein, Dracula and other high calibre literary works … read in schools throughout the World.” In addition, new provisions dealing specifically with narcotics were added. The revisions dealing with sex also reflected the relaxing of the strict morality imposed by the 1950s version of the code. Although illicit sex acts were not to be portrayed, they could now be hinted at. Although rape still could not be shown or suggested, seduction could be suggested (although not shown). The code provisions for advertising remained unchanged. Unlike other magazines, which relied heavily on advertising revenue, the revenue derived by comic book

publishers for advertising was negligible. Nearly 95 percent of revenues came from newsstand sales.

A lengthy preamble was added to the 1971 code reaffirming the publishers’ commitment to act responsibly in publishing comics. It praised comics as an “effective tool” for education and instruction and also noted the comics’ emerging role as a contributor to “social commentary and criticism of contemporary life,” recognizing the move in the industry to incorporate contemporary issues into story lines. The code changes were explained as necessary to making a positive contribution to “contemporary life.” While the wording of some sections of the code was modified and a new section on how to handle drugs was added, the format of the code remained unchanged, with the emphasis remaining on the depiction of crime and authority figures. Comic book standards defined the reader as a child, and there was no acknowledgement on the part of the CMAA-member publishers that the medium should move beyond content suitable for an audience of all ages.

These changes were approved by the publishers at their meeting in December, but the publishers could not agree over the wording of Part C, which gave the code administrator broad powers to interpret the code for “all elements or techniques not specifically mentioned” in the code. That debate was carried over into the board’s meeting January 28, 1971. National Periodical Publications had proposed amending that section of the code by adding a second paragraph that would read: “It is not the intent of the Code to prohibit the treatment of such realistic problems as drugs, generation gap, poverty, racial relations, abortions and political unrest handled in an instructive positive fashion. This provision shall not be unreasonably invoked” (CMAA Files [minutes, 28 Jan. 1971]). The debate centered around the provisions involving drugs and abortion. Although the amendment was supported by Charles Goodman, representing Marvel Comics, and Carmine Infantino, representing National, three other publishers opposed its adoption, including Goldwater (representing Archie Comics), Leon Harvey of Harvey Comics, and John Santangelo, representing Charlton Comics. The proposal failed, and Section C of the comics code remained unchanged.

The Powers That Were (Below:) The four publishers—and one soon-to-be publisher—who voted in 1971 on the updating of the Comics Code. Some were more eager to do so than others.

Charles “Chip” Goodman, son of Timely/Marvel founder Martin Goodman, and Marvel’s publisher 1971-72. 1966 photo from Adam Parfray’s 2003 book It’s a Man’s World. [© the respective copyright holders.]

Carmine Infantino, editorial director (& near-future publisher) of DC Comics. Photo taken at 1972 San Diego Comic-Con by Vince Davis.

John Goldwater, Archie publisher, in a 1943 photo; thanks to Mike Tiefenbacher. Sorry we couldn’t come up with a more recent photo.

Leon Harvey, co-publisher of Harvey Comics, in a 1972 photo. Thanks to Mark Arnold & Frank Motler.

John Santangelo, Jr., who had by 1970-71 taken over most of his father’s duties as publisher of Charlton Comics, in a 1970s photo from interview magazine CARTOONIST PROfiles. Thanks to Jon B. Cooke & Phil Hurd. [© Claudia Hurd.]

DAN BARRY & Flash Gordon Part III Continuing Our Look At A Controversial Comics Talent by Alberto Becattini

A/E

EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION: Issues #130131 saw the first two parts of this artistic biography of Dan Barry (1923-1997), who in his day was both a leading comic book illustrator and the long-running force behind the iconic Flash Gordon newspaper comic strip that had been created in 1934 by Alex Raymond. The first installment covered Barry’s comic book career at DC, Lev Gleason, and elsewhere, his stints on the Tarzan comic strip and in advertising, and his and King Features’ relaunching of the daily Flash Gordon comic strip in 1951, after a sevenyear hiatus. The second segment dealt with his first half-dozen years doing Flash Gordon, often with the help of a revolving door of friends and hired scripters and artists, with whom he had an often difficult relationship. At various times in the latter 1950s, Barry lived in the South of France, England, and Italy. Writer (and former Flash Gordon scribe) Harry Harrison moved to Italy in 1958 and scripted for Barry for a time. That summer, Barry moved to the isle of Capri, and the two continued to work together after Harrison returned home as his first science-fiction novel, Deathworld, was being published. Barry and Harrison had Flash and his longtime ladyfriend Dale Arden marry—then break up as she decided she “need[ed] to be needed” and Flash Gordon wasn’t the “needy” kind. She became the fiancée of a man named Steve Benton....

Austrian Days

Dale was basically out of the picture for over three years. Meanwhile, Barry had left Italy and relocated in Austria, eventually renting a chalet in Kitzbühel. While there, he met Jutta Gartenschläger, an attractive six-foot-tall blonde who had been working as a stunt actress in several skiing movie scenes. She

would soon become his second wife. Barry became an excellent skier, and at one time he had the Shah of Persia as a skiing mate. Through artist/sculptor Paul Von Ringelheim (who modeled for Barry as Owl in 1961’s “Horseparlor in the Sky”), Barry also made friends with movie actor Kirk Douglas, who was living near him with his family during 1960 while shooting the film Town without Pity. While in Austria, Barry also studied at the Kokoschka Workshop and later founded an art colony, conducting his own painting classes at the Tyrol State Museum. Ric Estrada [who had also moved to the Austrian Alps, at Barry’s suggestion] drew most of “The Visitors” (1961), in which Harry Harrison was caricatured as one of the assistants to the

Chess One Of Those Things Dan Barry plays chess at his chalet in Kitzbühel, Austria, circa 1960 (top right)—while a short-haired Dale reappears in the beautiful “Quarantine Station” continuity, also known as the “Interferon Story,” by Harry Harrison and Dan Barry. July 9, 1960, daily strip, reproduced from original art. [© King Features Syndicate, Inc.]

Dan Barry & Flash Gordon—Part III

More Space Ghosts (Above:) Oct. 12, 1959, strip drawn by Mike Sekowsky & Frank Giacoia. Reproduced from original art. [© King Features Syndicate, Inc.]

Artists Mike Sekowsky (1923-1989), seen above left, and Frank Giacoia (19241988) teamed up on various Flash Gordon daily sequences from 1953-60.

Null-G & Void From 1958-70, Harry Harrison (nee Henry Maxwell Dempsey, 1925-2012) also wrote the Flash Gordon Sunday page for artist Mac Raboy. At center right is Harrison’s sketch of Flash’s Null-G spacesuit, visualized by Raboy in the Oct. 15, 1961, page directly above. [© 2015 King Features Syndicate, Inc.]

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt!

The Pen Is Deadlier Than The Sword Dept.! And, finally, we have your basic white-collar criminals, working their evil deeds with pen and paper. On these two covers, the crooks not only force their victim to write a phony will, but then make a few extra bucks with a life insurance policy—post-mortem! I’m guessing their grandkids are cleaning up on Wall Street nowadays. (Top:) Real Clue Crime Stories V3#4 (June 1948). Art signed by Zolnerowich. (Bottom:) Real Clue Crime Stories V3#2 (April 1948). Artist unknown. [© the respective copyright holders.]

Comic Fandom Archive

Alter Ego’s Multi-Part Tribute To G.B. Love & RBCC – Part 2

G.B. Love. Photo by Robert Brown.

Introduction

Last issue, we kicked off our tribute to Gordon Belljohn Love and his estimable fanzine by publishing an overview of his accomplishments as one of the founders and linchpins of comicdom’s Golden Age. Now let’s get to know G.B. a little better, through John de Groot’s perceptive, occasionally eloquent feature article that appeared in a Florida newspaper

when RBCC was at its peak. It’s © 1971 by The Miami Herald, as are the two accompanying photographs by Dave Didio. The handful of minor errors in the piece are reprinted “as is,” followed by the corrected form in brackets, to wit: Tonnerville Folk [ = Toonerville Folks]. Otherwise, we retained the style and substance of the original article. —Bill Schelly.

The Super Labors Of Love

Miamian G.B. Love is crippled by cerebral palsy. It was a difficult time—until he discovered “Shazam” From Tropic magazine, The Miami Herald, May 2, 1971 And G.B. Love fooled them all. He made the miracle happen.

by John de Groot Herald staff writer

His body remains stubborn and frail, but now G.B. Love works long into the lonely night in a tiny, cluttered room of his parents’ house in Southwest Miami, carefully clutching a blunt pencil, punching out one letter at a time on an electric typewriter, letters turning into words, hard hours grinding into weeks, his body fighting him all the way as he wears out six electric typewriters and unknown blunt pencils creating a whole world of miracles.

akes a miracle to change things. They’ve been telling G.B. Love that for all of his 31 years. A crashing, blinding miracle. Nothing else will do it. Not medicine. Not G.B. Love. Only the splitting of sky and a miracle.

His body won’t listen to him. He asks an arm to move and it does so with reluctance, fighting back, fingers fluttering. He tells a leg to step forward and all it can do is shuffle.

Impossible biceps spring to life, flexing outward from massive chests. Below are a sculptured solar plexus and lithe hips reaching down to join tree trunk thighs. Here are granite jaws. There swing steel fists. Notice the awesome pectorals. Observe the bunched calves.

G.B. Love has cerebral palsy. He has had it since birth, when doctors found certain motor functions of his brain had been damaged.

All his life, G.B. Love has been trying to tell his body to do this and that, working hard with his fine mind, hoping to force a word through resisting lips, wanting hands to clasp firmly around small objects, dreaming of the day when his body might listen to him.

The World’s Mightiest Forehead G.B. Love as seen in Tropic Magazine (part of the Miami Herald newspaper) in 1971, with a Don Newton drawing of Captain Marvel superimposed on his brow. The Big Red Cheese was one of Love’s favorite comic book characters, as well as Newton’s. Photo by Dave Didio. [Shazam hero TM & © DC Comics.]

Tap, tap. G.B. Love taps away about bodies, wondrous, impossible, beautiful Super Bodies “faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a

Alter Ego #134