Issuu

Roy Thomas’ Monstrous Comics Fanzine

PRESENTS

HARLAN ELLISON VS. THE

8.95

In the USA

No.138 March 2016

MONSTER SOCIETY OF EVIL!

PLUS!

C.C. BECK ON THE

DC/FAWCETT LAWSUIT

82658 27763

Shazam hero, Billy Batson, & Mr. Mind TM & © DC Comics; “Shazam” is a registered trademark of DC Comics. Harlan Ellison is a registered TM of The Kilimanjaro Corporation.

BONUS!

TWO TITANIC TRIBUTES TO

FRED KIDA

writer/editorial

One Tuesday Down A Rabbit Hole

hile Harlan Ellison has worked in many media and genres, he is known primarily as a writer of sciencefiction—he calls it “speculative fiction,” a better name, actually—and not as a comics writer. Still, he has scribed a number of comic book stories over the years, starting with one for the fabled EC Comics group… and his work has often been adapted into comics by others, whether it’s his script for the 1960s Star Trek TV series; his SF stories adapted by Warren, Marvel, et al.; or the issues of Avengers and Incredible Hulk he plotted for Yours Truly to dialogue. What Harlan talks about to Brian Cremins, however, is mostly centered around Fawcett Publications’ original Captain Marvel in general, and the 25-chapter “Monster Society of Evil” serial in particular. That interview seemed a good fit for A/E, because Harlan’s been a booster of this magazine since the get-go, with phone calls and the occasional postcard—and we’re honored to feature it, along with artist C.C. Beck’s testimony in the infamous DC vs. Fawcett lawsuit. Besides my admiration for his SF work, I have a particular connection to Harlan which he has quite possibly forgotten, but which looms large in my life. In early 1975, about the time my first marriage was beginning to come apart (again), Harlan arranged for fellow comics writer Denny O’Neil and me to fly from New York to Los Angeles to take part in a program of symposiums at UCLA. Called “Ten Tuesdays down a Rabbit Hole,” it consisted of Harlan moderating, with various SF-related guests. Our particular evening dealt with “strange inputs” to science-fiction: things like fantasy, horror—and, in the case of Denny and me, comic books. (Robert “Psycho” Bloch was on the bill with us.) My wife Jean, busy with her own job, remained in Manhattan. Not wanting to intrude upon Harlan during the day or so I was

in L.A., I made plans in advance to spend time with an old friend from high school, Angie Leonard. Upon arrival, I learned Denny and I were invited to Harlan’s home, but I had to beg off, having prior plans. The UCLA event went well. Harlan made sure the audience understood that comics were a valid creative endeavor, not to be sneered at. I’d been to California several times before, starting in 1969, but this time something clicked. The milieu of Westwood, near UCLA… hanging out with Angie, an artist who combined careers in teaching and art therapy… I began to look favorably, for the first time, upon the possibility of someday moving to the West Coast. It’s no coincidence that, after Jeanie and I split up for good that summer, it was to L.A. that I went in February ’76 for a week’s vacation while Marvel was drawing up a contract under which I’d return as editor-in-chief. Again I hung out with Angie, also this time with Don Glut—and, by the time I flew back to New York, I’d already rented an apartment just up the hill from the Warner lot and I told Stan Lee I’d changed my mind about returning to my old job. I was moving to California instead. There, a year later, I would meet Danette Couto (now, I’m happy to say, Dann Thomas), as well as do a bit of film work that proved enjoyable and profitable. And, the way I see it, none of that would’ve happened if Harlan hadn’t invited me down that West Coast rabbit hole one Tuesday in 1975. All that, and he’s one of the foremost SF short story writers ever, to boot. Is it any wonder I’m proud to spotlight Harlan Ellison as the cover feature of this issue of Alter Ego? Keep ’em comin’, Harlan. You’re as good as they get. Bestest,

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139

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“Nay, Never Will I Serve Thee, Mr. Mind!” Or, “I Think I Was A Fawcett Kid” An Interview With HARLAN ELLISON®

Conducted, Transcribed, & Edited by Brian Cremins, Ph.D. Redacted/Vetted/Engrossed by Harlan Ellison [Copyright © 2014 by The Kilimanjaro Corporation. All rights reserved. Harlan Ellison is a Registrered TM of The Kilimanjaro Corporation.]

NTERVIEWER’S INTRODUCTION: “I’m a comic book fan. I love comic books,” explains Harlan Ellison in his introduction to Ken Viola’s 1987 documentary The Masters of Comic Book Art. “Comic books were the training ground for me in terms of ethics, in terms of the things I learned about courage, good, and evil, what heroism was, right and wrong. Comic books are the Grimm’s Fairy Tales of the popular culture.” On January 10, 2014, I had the opportunity to speak with Ellison about his life-long affection for Captain Marvel and Billy Batson; his memories of C.C. Beck; and his continued devotion to the craft and discipline of storytelling. Along the way, he recalled his days as a young comic book fan in Painesville, Ohio, his memories of the “Monster Society of Evil” serial from Captain Marvel Adventures, and his friendships with, among many other legends, Alfred Bester and original 1970s DC Shazam! editor Julius Schwartz. Always prolific, Harlan Ellison, who turned 80 on May 27, 2014, is in the process of publishing new editions of his novels and short story collections through E-Reads. Meanwhile, Harlan Ellison Books (www.harlanellisonbooks.com) offers readers a selection of his teleplays and screenplays. Online, you can watch Ellison on his YouTube channel as he speaks about everything from his disgust with the distor-

Mind-ing Our Own Business (Top of page:) C.C. Beck’s cover for Captain Marvel Adventures #29 (Nov. 1943)— and (at right) the image of interviewee Harlan Ellison gracing what was originally to have been the cover of this issue of A/E. (See page 1 for the story behind the switch!) The former is the first of only three covers (out of a possible 25) that spotlighted images of Mr. Mind and/or The Monster Society of Evil while the immortal serial was running—and the latter was designed by Mark Lewis under the aegis of P.C. Hamerlinck, utilizing a photo taken by Thomas De Soto. Full disclosure: It was A/E editor Roy T. who insisted on adding the “SHAZAM!” balloon. [Shazam hero & Mr. Mind TM & © DC Comics; art in background on unused cover © the respective copyright holders.]

tions of fact in the film Saving Mr. Banks to his love for jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt. Early in January 2014, I contacted Jason Davis, publisher of Harlan Ellison Books, to see if I could ask Harlan a few questions about Billy Batson and Captain Marvel. A few days later, after a week of sub-zero temperatures, I was sitting with poet Tony Trigilio in the Heartland Café

“Nay, Never Will I Serve Thee, Mr. Mind!”

Don’t Knock The Spock! (Above:) That Ellison kid sure got around! Here he is—curiously, looking exactly the same as on this issue’s cover—with Mr. Spock and Captain Kirk! Thanks to Harlan and Brian Cremins. (Right:) A page from Star Trek: Harlan Ellison’s Original The City On The Edge Of Forever Teleplay #2 (IDW, 2014) the comic adaptation of Harlan Ellison’s Star Trek script. Art by J.K. Woodward. (Far right:) Harlan’s short story collection Approaching Oblivion, 1974, which includes the autobiographical tale “One Life, Furnished in Early Poverty.” The cover is the work of Leo and Diane Dillon. [TM & © the respective trademark & copyright holders.]

on the North Side of Chicago when I noticed a voicemail on my phone: “I’m charming and equitable and surly and I’m sure you’ll find the conversation rewarding,” Harlan said at the close of his message. I’d like to thank Harlan for taking the time to speak with me, and for his kindness, his humor, his wisdom, and his generosity. I’d also like to thank Jason Davis for helping to set up this interview, Roy Thomas and P.C. Hamerlinck for encouraging me to transcribe it for FCA, and Allison Felus for copyediting the transcription.

HARLAN ELLISON: Superman was already an established icon, but Superman was beyond any danger. Captain Marvel was closer to me in identifiability because he was Billy Batson at the same time. And Billy Batson had to say “Shazam!” before he could become Captain Marvel. That made him vulnerable, and it also gave him the powers of the wizard Shazam—which were Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, and Zeus, and on and on. And that led me into reading about the gods and studying about Solomon and—being an autodidact and a voracious reader— I already knew how to read because I had taught myself at, I think about the age of two, off cereal boxes. There was a legitimate, historical, mythological tie-in to Captain Marvel and Billy Batson. So I was able to

Ellison Wonderland, Approaching Oblivion, Deathbird Stories, Shatterday, An Edge in My Voice, Angry Candy—those are just a few of the 102 books Ellison has published over the course of his career, a selection of my favorites. What are yours? I began by asking Harlan about the origins of his love for Captain Marvel, Billy Batson, and the other heroes and heroines of The Marvel Family. So now, ladies and gentlemen, Harlan Ellison...

“‘M’ Is For The Million Things You’ve…” (Above:) Ellison in a Shazam! shirt, utilizing the magic word that DC Comics had to make its title for a “Captain Marvel” revival in 1973, due to Marvel Comics’ by-then-trademark on the word “Marvel” in logos. Thanks to Harlan and Brian Cremins. (Right:) Beck’s cover art for Whiz Comics #30 (May 15, 1942) featured the names of the six fabled gods and heroes who gave the word “Shazam” its potency. An explanatory illo of this sort was often included on a contents page in issues of Captain Marvel Adventures. The heading above is Jules Feiffer’s tongue-in-cheek notion of what the “M” in “Shazam” stood for, as per his 1965 book The Great Comic Book Heroes. [Shazam hero TM & © DC Comics.]

An Interview With Harlan Ellison

Alfred Bester

Good, Better, Bester (Above:) Julius Schwartz and Harlan at the latter’s home with SF author Alfred Bester’s Grandmaster Award, presented by the Science Fiction Writers of America. Photo courtesy of Harlan Ellison; first used in A/E #38, our full-issue tribute to Schwartz, who in 1973 became the first editor of DC’s Shazam! title.\

It’s Always Foul Weather... (Right:) Just in time to be squeezed into this issue, pro artist Terry Austin sent us this spanking-new illo of a Monster Society of Evil reunion. Thanks, Terry! [Shazam characters TM & © DC Comics; other art © 2016 Terry Austin.]

of my office/library addition to my home, right next to my Grandmaster Award. Alfred Bester’s and mine stand together, and Julie Schwartz’s toaster…. [pause] Julie was incapable of making a meal for himself. And he ate everything out of boxes. And when his wife died… of course, she had cooked for him… and then, when she died, Julie resorted to a bachelor existence. And I bought him a toaster. It was not terribly complex. It was simple, it would do a great English muffin, and when Julie died, he left word in, not his will, but in his notes to people, Send the toaster back to Harlan. [laughs] And so I’ve got the Julius Schwartz Memorial Toaster sitting in my house! And Julie and Otto were very close, of course. And Julie would talk to me about giving work to Otto and… you know, the few people Julie could save from the Fawcett debacle. Towards the end of the interview, Harlan asked, “Well, anyhow, have I given you everything that you needed, kid?” Yes, I said, and then some. I’ve already mentioned that we talked on Friday, January 10, a few days after Chicago’s 2014 Polar Vortex with daytime highs of negative 13 degrees and wind chills of negative 40. In Los Angeles, Harlan said, it was in the 80s: “I hope the snow melts and leaves you alone,” he added. “The coldest days in my life, apart from being about 12 degrees beneath the Arctic Circle, in New Brunswick, Canada, were when I lived in Chicago.” There’s a story there, too, a place, a shadow, a memory. The day I finished transcribing this interview, I walked down Belmont to the Gallery Bookstore, where William Fiedler sold me a copy of the second printing of the 1953 Shasta edition of Alfred Bester’s The Demolished Man. Then we talked about Fritz Leiber and Henry Kuttner and C.L. Moore until a kid, a college student from Shimer, asked us if we’d ever heard of Borges, and do you guys have any graphic novels? Meanwhile, somewhere else, there’s a little boy with a bicycle and a comic book and he’s sitting beneath the statue of General Edward Paine in Charter Oak Park in Painesville, Ohio, and it’s summer again, 1943.

The Boy Is Father To The Man The Beck-Costanza cover of Captain Marvel Adventures #22 (Oct. 3, 1941), the image that was used as the main artwork for the cover of this issue of Alter Ego. [Shazam hero & Billy Batson TM & © DC Comics.]

Brian Cremins.

Brian Cremins is writing a book about comics, nostalgia, and Captain Marvel for the University Press of Mississippi. An Associate Professor of English at Harper College, he lives in Chicago.

Captain Marvel’s Day(s) In Court

C.C. BECK’s 1944 DC Vs. Fawcett Deposition Assembled, Abridged, & Edited by P.C. Hamerlinck with J.T. Go

NTRODUCTION by P.C. Hamerlinck: With its two other passengers on board, we hitched a ride on that sleek, modernist subway train which delivered us to a dream—a world where the utterance of a single word could transcend its own remarkable reality, colorfully brought to our eyes uncluttered and simplified, allowing our imaginations to thrive in and between the panels. From the very beginning, Bill Parker and C.C. Beck had gone the extra mile to differentiate Captain Marvel from the indomitable flood of comic book heroes popping up almost daily during the early ’40s, despite what some folks might have you believe.

When Beck later deliberated on the dissimilarities between the Man of Steel and the World’s Mightiest Mortal during his tenure as FCA editor in the early 1980s, he pointed out that Superman was “a fullgrown man… a creature from another planet who went about disguised as a human,” while Captain Marvel, by contrast, was only a small boy with a magic word. (Beck himself always considered Billy Batson to be the true hero of the Captain’s tales, anyway.) The biggest difference between Superman and Captain Marvel, according to Beck, was that “Captain Marvel knew he was in a comic book and loved it, while Superman always seemed to be ashamed of appearing in one.” It appeared Superman wasn’t invulnerable after all, and thus began DC’s copyright infringement case against Fawcett Publications, droning on for over a decade. During all those years, DC’s attorneys—led by Louis Nizer—were never able to scrape up one witness who would testify that anyone at Fawcett had been mandated to copy Superman.

“Do You Swear To Tell The Truth, The Whole Truth…?” Even poor old Shazam was put on the witness stand in this splash panel from Captain Marvel Adventures #79 (Dec. 1947). Script by Otto Binder; art by C.C. Beck & Pete Costanza. This courtroom drama was probably a lot more fun to observe than the one between DC and Fawcett—but the stakes were high in both! [Shazam & Shazam hero TM & © DC Comics.]

C.C. Beck left the official employ of Fawcett and opened up his own studio at the end of March 1943. In April of ’44 he formed a partnership with fellow artist Pete Costanza. The Beck-Costanza Studio produced exclusively “Captain Marvel” artwork for Fawcett, in addition to other accounts. Besides the DC vs. Fawcett embroilment, the only other time Beck had felt the repercussions of legal entanglements was when he created the minuscule electron hero “Hot Shot Galavan—The Mighty Electronic Mite” for Vic Verity Magazine (1945). Soon after Galavan appeared, Beck received a “cease and desist” letter from General Electric, which claimed his creation was a direct ripoff of their famous Reddy Kilowatt character. The following trial transcriptions are excerpts from C.C. Beck’s DC vs. Fawcett deposition from 1944. The depositions of W.H. Fawcett, Jr., Roger Fawcett, and editorial director Ralph Daigh, also all in attendance that

day, took place right before Beck’s, and were actually recorded at Fawcett’s New York City office. Beck would later take the courtroom stand and face off against Nizer in March of 1948, which we’ll look at another time. If you can get past their arrant banality and repetitiveness, some brief instances of actual informative scraps of comics history can be rummaged up from the thousands and thousands of pages that the trial produced. However, as fascinating and engrossing as it may seem to peruse through old trial transcripts of a decade-long case involving your favorite superheroes, the overall cumulative consequences of studying even a moderately small-sized portion of them is a punishingly monotonous, mindnumbing, barbarous exercise. The transcripts make me eternally grateful I didn’t have to sit and endure any of the proceedings first-hand. [Special thanks to Brian Cremins, who supplied FCA with a stack of court transcription photocopies, and who wrote an overview of Bill Parker’s 1948 testimony for Alter Ego #131.]

Testimony & Opinion By C.C. Beck

made a Captain Marvel “Magic Flute” which played a single note before becoming permanently inoperative. All this disappeared down the drain in 1953. Superman’s lawyers wanted millions of dollars in damages, but Fawcett showed that for the past several years they had lost so much money on their Mary Marvel and Captain Marvel Jr. magazines that even the Captain Marvel books couldn’t cover their losses. Fawcett discontinued all their comics, which must have made Superman’s lawyers happy at last. The lawyers all got paid (probably not as much as they expected) and no Fawcett comic book was ever seen again. They all died a whimpering, miserable death.

A Fawcett Lynch-pin Superman’s lawyers were happy at last, as Captain Marvel “died a whimpering, miserable death,” as C.C. Beck called it. Panel from “Captain Marvel Retires” by Binder, Beck, & Costanza, from Whiz Comics #58 (Sept. 1944). [Shazam hero TM & © DC Comics.]

This concludes FCA #197. We now return you to the regularly scheduled Alter Ego #138. —PCH.

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Dr. Amy Kiste Nyberg

A/E

Seal Of Approval: The History Of The Comics Code

The Bibliography Of The 1998 Study Of Comics Censorship By DR. AMY KISTE NYBERG

EDITORS’ INTRODUCTION: In A/E #136, we concluded our multi-issue reprinting of the main text of Dr. Amy K. Nyberg’s book Seal of Approval: The History of the Comics Code, originally published in 1998 by the University Press of Mississippi (in trade paperback form, and still available from them at www.upress.sate.ms.us). Our re-publication was spread over A/E #123-128, 130, & 133-136. Once again we wish to thank Dr. Nyberg— and Dr. M. Thomas Inge, under whose general editorship the work first saw print and who was of crucial help to us in securing permission to present it in Alter Ego. Our thanks, also, to William Biggins and Vijah Shah, acquisitions editors past and present of the UPM… and to Brian K. Morris for a typing assist. Because Seal of Approval is extensively footnoted (in the Modern Library Association style), we wanted to finish by reprinting Dr. Nyberg’s bibliography, as well, since the book would not be complete without it… nor would any reader be able to check her original sources for his/her own enlightenment or research. Naturally, we’ve thrown in a few art spots (and our own captions) along the way to illustrate the history of comics censorship, the Comics Magazine Association of America, and the Comics Code Authority….

References Abelson, Nathan. “Comics Are a Serious Business.” Advertising and Selling, July 1946, 41. ____. “Comics Are a Serious Business; Part II of a Study of Comic Magazines.” Advertising and Selling, Aug. 1946, 80-92. Adams v. Hinkle, 332 P.2d 844 (1958). Aldrich, Julian C. “Comics Are a Serious Business.” Scholastic, 10-15 Nov. 1941, T-1. American Civil Liberties Union. “Censorship of Comic Books: A Statement.” New York, NY, 1955. Andrae, Thomas. “From Menace to Messiah: The Prehistory of the Superman in Science Fiction Literature.” Discourse 2 (1980): 84-111. Anttonen, Eva J. “On Behalf of Dragons.” Wilson Library Bulletin 10 (1941): 567. “Association of Comics Publishers.” Advertising and Selling, July 1947, 102.

“I Have In My Hand…” A member of the Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency, in early 1954, holds up a “random sampling” of crime and horror comics as evidence of publishers’ pernicious perfidy. From Changing Times magazine.

Baisden, Greg. “Friendly Frank’s Wins on Appeal.” Comics Journal, Dec. 1989, 13-15. “Ban on Comics Held Unconstitutional.” Editor and Publisher, 31 Dec. 1949, 10.

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt!

Prepubescent & Publisher (Above:) H. Walter drew this header illustration for Lev Gleason’s article. [© 1952 Today’s Health.] (Right:) Drew Friedman’s superb portrait of Gleason appeared in his book Heroes of the Comics. You gotta pick this book up! [© 2015 Drew Friedman.]

Introduction

by Michael T. Gilbert

omic book publisher Lev Gleason made a small fortune printing some of the most wonderfully gruesome, depraved comics of the Golden Age. In their prime, each issue of Daredevil, Boy Comics, and the notorious Biro & Wood Crime Does Not Pay sold millions. But by 1952 the comic book landscape had changed—and so, it appeared, had Gleason. In response to attacks by critics like Dr. Fredric Wertham, Gleason began publishing more kid-friendly titles like Slugger, Squeeks, Dilly, and Uncle Charlie’s Fables—fairy tales told by writer/editor Charles Biro. The critics may have approved, but the kids stayed away in droves. None lasted past five issues.

But Gleason’s heart was in the right place, as seen in this spirited defense of comics that appeared in the September 1952 issue of Today’s Health. Our thanks to Comics Detective Ken Quattro for sharing this article.

“In Defense Of Comic Books”

In Defense Of Comic Books

by Leverett Gleason

n at least 20,000,000 American homes today there is a youngster avidly reading a comics magazine. Chances are there is a sizeable stack of these magazines waiting their turn for his attention. The home may be humble or lavish. The child may be brilliant or dull. The fact is that this enthusiasm for the comics is universal in our current generation of youngsters. Well over 75% of all children between four and 19 are regular readers of comics magazines. Sales total between 60 and 70 million copies a month. More than 400 different comics magazines are on sale today. They constitute more than a third of all the newsstand reading matter in this country. The influence that this part of the reading diet has on children has become an important consideration for parents, educators, sociologists, doctors, and, in fact, the entire population. Now that the comics magazines have been popular for nearly 15 years, psychologists and educators have been able to make extensive studies of their effects and to develop some significant theories. Comics magazines, they declare, offer an amazing potential. They can actually help mold their young readers into happier, more intelligent adults, if developed with that in mind. They can be conceived to catch the child’s interest, give him fun and excitement in a decent moral and ethical framework, foster a realistic understanding of life and a sense of discrimination in literature and art. One authority has told me that if he could control all the editorial material that goes into comics magazines, he would be able completely to shape the future thinking of this country. That may be an extreme viewpoint, but many agree with him. Sidonie Matsner Gruenberg, director of the Child Study Association of America and a recognized authority on the subject, expresses it in another way:

He Also Serves… This Morris Weiss drawing appeared in Daredevil #16 (April 1943) and depicts Leverett Gleason during a stint in the Army Air Corps. [© the respective copyright holders.]

“We are dealing with a relatively new means of communication. Like movies and radio, in fact, the spoken or written word, comics can say almost anything one may want to say. However good or bad and whatever we may want to say or teach, comics can be more quickly and widely understood by young and old than the written word. The comics thus contain the possibilities of valuable, positive contributions to better

How Slugger Survives! Slugger was the only member of Daredevil’s Little Wise Guys to earn his own title—though only for a single issue (April 1956). Art by Charles Biro. [© the respective copyright holders.]

mutual understanding and better living everywhere.” Another authority, Josette Frank, educational associate of the Child Study Association, adds that the comics magazine has a high potential value because it is so acceptable to children and it can be timely and contemporary in a way books cannot. Here, perhaps more effectively than elsewhere, she adds, we can find an opportunity to give children forward-looking attitudes, ideas, and ideals about the world they live in. The effect of brutality, sex, sadism and cruelty in children’s reading matter is self-evident. No comic book which includes such matter can ever be acceptable. The strict code of ethics set up by the Association of Comics Magazine Publishers has brought about the elimination of such scenes from the magazines published by association members. Every issue of the magazines put out by members is examined before it is printed by an arbiter retained by the association. It is his job to order any changes he deems necessary and members must conform. Not all comic book publishers are members of the association, but many who do not belong carry on their own self-censorship. Alert parents may have noted some slow but significant results. It is important that parents recognize the influence of comics magazines. It is useless to think that children can be prohibited from reading them and the task of selecting suitable ones thereby avoided. Unless a child is sealed in a cave it is next to impossible to keep him from reading comics magazines, since they are every-

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Comic Fandom Archive

Survivors Of The First Comicon 59

On The 50th Anniversary of the first New York Comicon, five fans “who were there” appeared on a panel at the 2014 New York Comic Con to reflect on how it all got started.

The Panelists: BERNIE BUBNIS, LEN WEIN, ETHAN ROBERTS, HOWARD ROGOFSKY, ART TRIPP, FLO STEINBERG, and RICK BIERMAN

Part 2 - Introduction

n this issue, we conclude our two-part feature on this historic panel, which brought together seven people who attended the first New York Comicon, held on July 27, 1964. That first comics convention was held on a Monday because it was thought there was a better chance of attendance by comics professionals if it took place on a working day. The 50th-anniversary panel was organized by Ethan Roberts, who served as moderator. The first half of the panel was transcribed in our previous issue, and we now pick it up midway through…. —Bill Schelly. ETHAN ROBERTS: The list you see up there is a list of the folks who attended the convention. [Refers to a slide that is projected large enough for the audience to read; the list was printed last issue, with Part I] The names in blue are professionals then who attended then. You see Steve Ditko. It was the only convention he ever attended. We must have scared the hell out of him. [audience laughs] Tom Gill was the artist of The Lone Ranger and various Dell comics for many years. Larry Ivie was a semi-pro. The folks shown in green were the dealers. So we have up there—if I could only see—Len Berman was the partner of Phil Seuling. You should all know the name “Phil Seuling.” [audience cheers] Phil was at

the first convention, and the second convention. Phil ran the third convention. For years, the July 4th convention in New York City was the biggest convention anywhere, and Phil ran those. [A/E EDITOR’S NOTE: Actually, the main New York cons from 1965 through 1967 were hosted not by Seuling but by David Kaler, with another in ’66 from John Benson and one in early ’67 from Calvin Beck. Seuling’s baptism of fire was the so-called SCARP-Con in 1968; he put them on on his own beginning in 1969.] In addition to that, how many of you have ever been to a comic shop? [audience chuckles again] Phil Seuling started the distribution pattern that created the comic shops. So he was there with Len Berman. Another dealer who was there was Claude Held, who came from upstate New York. We already know Howard [Rogofsky] was there. Another dealer, Bill Thailing, came in from Cleveland, Ohio. And Malcolm Willits came in from California. He came from the farthest away. Malcolm is 80 years old or better, and now lives in Palm Desert, but he’s still alive. [NOTE FROM BILL: Malcolm Willits was born in February 1934.] Howard is waiting to outlive him, too. [audience laughs] I want to make a big deal about the name up there, “George Martin.” That’s George R.R. Martin. You all know him primarily as the author of the A Song of Ice and Fire series, better known to those of you who don’t

“Déjà Vu All Over Again!” (Clockwise from left, with the usual apologies to the late great Yogi Berra:) Lacking a pic of the entire “Survivors of the First Comicon” panel, we’re repeating this group photo taken at the New York Comicon sometime that day of most of the panelists. (Standing left to right:) Bernie Bubnis, Art Tripp, Rick Bierman, Ethan Roberts. Seated: Len Wein. Missing: Howard Rogofsky & Flo Steinberg. A photo of Howard can be seen on p. 62. The “Comicon 1964” button, shown as an insert, was designed by Tripp. On the panel at the 2014 New York Comicon: Bubnis, Bierman, Tripp, and Steinberg. Unseen in this pic are moderator Roberts, Rogofsky, and Bierman. Both photos courtesy of Lucille Bubnis, Bernie’s long-suffering wife. Mug shots of a number of other attendees of the 1964 con were seen last issue.