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Okay, Axis— Here We Come!

January 2003

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1970s Bullpenner WARREN REECE talks about Marvel Comics and working with EVERETT, BURGOS, ROMITA, STAN LEE, MARIE SEVERIN, ADAMS, FRIEDRICH, ROY THOMAS, and others, with rare art! DEWEY CASSELL spotlights Golden Age artist MIKE PEPPE, with art by TOTH, ANDRU, TUSKA, CELARDO, & LUBBERS, plus FCA, MR. MONSTER, BILL SCHELLY, cover by EVERETT & BURGOS, and more!

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LEGO SPACE WAR issue! A STARFIGHTER BUILDING LESSON by Peter Reid, WHY SPACE MARINES ARE SO POPULAR by Mark Stafford, a trip behind the scenes of LEGO’S NEW ALIEN CONQUEST SETS that hit store shelves earlier this year, plus JARED K. BURKS’ column on MINIFIGURE CUSTOMIZATION, building tips, event reports, our step-by-step “YOU CAN BUILD IT” INSTRUCTIONS, and more!

Go to Japan with articles on two JAPANESE LEGO FAN EVENTS, plus take a look at JAPAN’S SACRED LEGO LAND, Nasu Highland Park—the site of the BrickFan events and a pilgrimage site for many Japanese LEGO fans. Also, a feature on JAPAN’S TV CHAMPIONSHIP OF LEGO, a look at the CLICKBRICK LEGO SHOPS in Japan, plus how to get into TECHNIC BUILDING, LEGO EDUCATION, and more!

LEGO EVENTS ISSUE covering our own BRICKMAGIC FESTIVAL, BRICKWORLD, BRICKFAIR, BRICKCON, plus other events outside the US. There’s full event details, plus interviews with the winners of the BRICKMAGIC CHALLENGE competition, complete with instructions to build award winning models. Also JARED K. BURKS’ regular column on minifigure customizing, building tips, and more!

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Vol. 3, No. 20 / January 2003

™

Editor Roy Thomas

Associate Editors Bill Schelly Jim Amash

Design & Layout Christopher Day

Consulting Editors John Morrow Jon B. Cooke

FCA Editor P.C. Hamerlinck

Comic Crypt Editor Michael T. Gilbert

Editors Emeritus Jerry Bails (founder) Ronn Foss, Biljo White, Mike Friedrich

Production Assistant Eric Nolen-Weathington

Cover Artists Bill Schelly & Friends Al Milgrom

Covers Colorist Tom Ziuko

And Special Thanks to: Bob Almond Murphy Anderson Sergio Aragonés David Armstrong Brian Ashmore Mark Austin Joe Azzato Mike W. Barr Terry Beatty Blake Bell Al Bigley Al Bradford Mike Burkey Mike Costa Craig Delich David Delich Bob Deschamps Daren Dillinger Shel Dorf Shelton Drum Jean-Jacques Dzialowski Tim Easterday Don Ensign Tom Fagan Ron Flick Ron Frantz Keif Fromm Mark Gamble David G. Hamilton Eric Wolfe Hanson Bill Harris Dave Hoover Tom Horvitz Steve Hurley Bob Justice Dave Kaler Jim Keefe Knut R. Knutsen Alan Kupperberg Harry Lampert

Dan Makara Scott M. Martin Dave Medinnus Al Milgrom The Guys at The Mint Sheldon Moldoff Fred Mommsen Brian K. Morris Mart & Carrie Nodell Tiffany Nodell Michelle Nolan Kevin O’Neill Jerry Ordway Bill Pearson John G. Pierce Rich Rubenfeld Paul Ryan Fred Schneider Carole Seuling Joe Simon Joe Sinnott Rick Stasi Carrie Strong Marc Swayze Daniel Tesmoingt Joel Thingvall Dann Thomas Alex Toth Jim Vadeboncoeur Ellen Vartanoff Irene Vartanoff Michael J. Vassallo James Warren Len Wein Rick Weingroff Stephen Wheeler Marv Wolfman Andy Yanchus Pat Yanchus

Contents Writer/Editorial: Invaders of the Lost Art! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 World War II Forever (But Only in Comic Books)!. . . . . . . . . . 3 Roy Thomas’ skeleton key to The Invaders—its origins and homage heroes & villains. Who Is Bob Deschamps...? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Jim Amash interviews a little-known but fascinating staff artist about Marvel’s Golden Age. “A Great Mix of Unique Cartoonists...” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 The legendary Alex Toth on a few other comics legends and non-legends you should know about. Flash Gordon Relaunched . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Michael T. Gilbert on Flash Gordon by Jim Keefe, Al Williamson, George Evans—and himself! re: [comments & corrections] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Spotlight On The 1965 New York Comicon . . . . . . . . . Flip Us! About Our Cover: Al Milgrom has long been one of Marvel's bright lights as artist and even editor (remember Marvel Fanfare?)—so we invited him to draw this issue's Timely/Marvel cover, as a combination homage/parody of a fairly familiar 1940 non-Timely/Marvel image. By the way, art collectors—Al is currently selling the original artwork (as well as a few other choice vintage and commission pieces) and can be reached at <EditoriAl4@aol.com> or via a letter (with other stamped envelopes enclosed) sent to Roy, which he'll forward. [Art ©2003 Al Milgrom; Angel, Blazing Skull, Vision, Whizzer, Sub-Mariner, Captain America, Human Torch, & Miss America TM & ©2003 Marvel Characters, Inc.] Above: By coincidence, at the very same time, Scott M. Martin had commissioned longtime Marvel artist Paul Ryan (Fantastic Four, Avengers West Coast, et al.) and inker Bob Almond to draw a distinctly similar piece for his collection, only featuring a straight “Invaders” cast (minus Toro). Thanks to all three for letting us print it. Oh, and you can visit The Bob Almond Inkwell for news, original art, inking commissions, and more at <www.almondink.com>. [Art ©2003 Paul Ryan & Bob Almond; Invaders TM & ©2003 Marvel Characters, Inc.] Alter EgoTM is published monthly by TwoMorrows, 1812 Park Drive, Raleigh, NC 27605, USA. Phone: (919) 833-8092. Roy Thomas, Editor. John Morrow, Publisher. Alter Ego Editorial Offices: Rt. 3, Box 468, St. Matthews, SC 29135, USA. Fax: (803) 826-6501; e-mail: roydann@ntinet.com. Send subscription funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial offices. Single issues: $8 ($10 Canada, $11 elsewhere). Twelve-issue subscriptions: $60 US, $120 Canada, $132 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 Canada. FIRST PRINTING.

Title writer/editorial

There were only about fifty issues, all-told, in various series, but lots of folks I run into at comics conventions seem to remember The Invaders with a fair amount of fondness. But then, to see someone who has a nostalgic/historical love for that series, I really only have to look in a mirror. There are lots of reasons I could think of, I suppose, that the 42 issues of 1970s Invaders, its ’77 Annual, two “Liberty Legion” issues of Marvel Premiere, one Marvel Two-inOne Annual, that mag’s following monthly issue (again with the Legion), What If? #4, and the four-issue 1994 Invaders series might be recalled with affection. It might be the sparkling stories and rousing repartee, but I doubt that’s it, hard as I worked at writing and editing those comics in two different decades.

Yeah, I kinda suspect that’s it. But all that art by the likes of Kirby, Kane, Robbins, Everett, Burgos, Avison, Hoover, Kupperberg, and other stalwarts whose wares you’ll see on display on our next ten pages or so didn’t exactly hurt. Flip ahead (as well as backward) in this section, and see if you don’t agree. Some of the art on display dates back to 1940—much is reproduced from photocopies of the original art for the first time ever—and a couple of specimens were drawn especially for this issue of Alter Ego.

According to Dave Medinnus, the Golden Age Marvel Squad (GAMS) are fans of Timely stories that take place before the events of Fantastic Four #1, whether originally published before 1961 or retroactively placed there within continuity—and of modern appearances of those comics’ heroes and their legacy. The GAMS make their home at the Golden Age Marvel Squad Message Board at <http://members5.boardhost.com/GAMS/>. Their logo art, seen above, is by artist Erik Wolfe Hanson. Nice, huh? [Art ©2003 Eric Wolfe Hanson; Invaders TM & ©2003 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

It might be the awesome artwork by a number of top-flight artists over the years—but even that can’t be more than a part of the answer. Or it might be because The Invaders filled, albeit only retroactively, a need—a desire—a craving by super-group fans—the kind of folks who like the Justice Society and the Justice League and the Marvel Family and even the Seven Soldiers of Victory—to see several of the greatest heroes of comics’ Golden Age together in non-stop action, in a way they never had been during the actual World War II years, and only twice afterward, in All Winners Comics #19 and #21.

When it comes to the legacy of Timely/Marvel’s Golden Age— everybody wants to get into the act!

And that includes 1940s Timely staff artist Bob Deschamps, and Jim Amash, who interviewed him. We think you’ll find the time you spend with them in this issue one of your most enjoyable experiences yet between the flipped covers of A/E.

All this, plus Alex Toth and Michael T. Gilbert and a couple of nice surprises in our prodigal “re:” section—including a snazzy recent Captain America sketch by none other than the red-white-and-blue hero’s co-creator, Joe Simon!

Submit Something To Alter Ego! Alter Ego is on the lookout for items that can be utilized in upcoming issues: • Convention Sketches and Program Books • Unpublished Artwork • Original Scripts (the older the better!) • Photos • Unpublished Interviews • Little-seen Fanzine Material We’re also interested in articles, article ideas, or any other suggestions... and we pay off in FREE COPIES of A/E. (If you’re already an A/E subscriber, we’ll extend your subscription.) Contact: Roy Thomas, Editor Rt. 3, Box 468 St. Matthews, SC 29135 Fax: (803)826-6501 • E-mail: roydann@ntinet.com

Submission Guidelines Submit artwork in one of these forms (in order of preference): 1) Clear color or black-&-white photocopies. 2) Scanned images—300ppi TIF (preferred) or JPEG (on Zip or floppy disk). 3) Originals (carefully packed and insured). Submit text in one of these forms: 1) E-mail (ASCII text attachments preferred) to: roydann@ntinet.com (NEW) 2) An ASCII or “plain text” file, supplied on floppy disk. 3) Typed, xeroxed, or laser printed pages.

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The Invaders

A Skeleton Key to the Roots of the 1970s Invaders—and Its Heroes and Villains by Roy Thomas [PREFACE: In Alter Ego, Vol. 2, #2 (Summer 1999), I wrote about The Invaders, which I developed for Marvel in the mid-1970s as what some (not I) would call the first fullout “retro” comic book—if only because the Lee-Kirby retellings of Golden Age Captain America tales in the 1960s never took up more than half of Tales of Suspense. However, because in ’99 A/E was only an addendum to Jon B. Cooke’s fledgling Comic Book Artist, I squeezed all I had to say about my WWII super-group into three pages—clearly inadequate to do justice to either the concept, the artists involved, or the book’s 1940s roots, let alone all three! [Though CBA #2 itself is long since out of print, that article is currently available in the TwoMorrows trade paperback Alter Ego: The Comic Book Artist Collection (see ad elsewhere in this issue), with six pages of additional material, including penciled versions of covers and art by Frank Robbins, Jack Kirby, and Dave Hoover. That relieves me of having to repeat here much of the info (or any of the art) that was in the earlier piece. Still, more backstory on The Invaders may be of interest to Golden, Silver, and Bronze Age enthusiasts alike, so here goes—this time with a concentration on the heroes and villains of the series, and their sources—often the comics characters of another company or era! —Roy.]

Okay, Axis... The Invaders started out as something of a lark... in an Avengers storyline to which they were only incidental. At this late stage, I’ve no idea which came first: the idea of Kang the Conqueror playing “cosmic chess” against a new creation I christened The Grand-Master, or the notion of parodying DC’s Justice League. I do recall quite clearly the related occasion that led to Marvel’s Squadron Sinister, and thereby the better-known Squadron Supreme... and, by a slightly less direct route, to The Invaders. At a 1969 party in Manhattan hosted by my first wife Jean

and myself, then-comics writer Mike Friedrich suggested to colleagues Dennis O’Neil and me that, since Denny was currently scripting Justice League of America and I was writing The Avengers for Marvel—two books with distinctly similar franchises—we ought to find a way to do a crossover between the two. Since a “real” meeting of the two groups was out of the question at that time, with Superman vs. Spider-Man still half a decade in the future, Mike’s idea was for the two of us to do it surreptitiously, with each creating a super-villain team which would be the rough equivalent of the hero group the other was writing. With a pair of stiff drinks in hand, Denny and I enthusiastically agreed, and a scheme was hatched. It would have to be kept under the table, of course, because neither DC’s powers-that-be nor Stan Lee was likely The first hundred issues or so of The Avengers were reprinted a few years back in handsome 8 1/2" x 6" b&w volumes by Planeta/Forum in Spain, seven issues to a book. The 1969 clash between the Avengers and the proto-Invaders made the cover of Los Vengadores, Vol. 12. Script by Roy Thomas, art by Sal Buscema & Sam Grainger. [©2003 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

World War II Forever the Nazi-occupied Paris of 1941. For purposes of differentiation, I had Namor drawn in his old lackluster black-with-yellow-stripes swim trunks, which couldn’t hold a candle to the scaly pair he’d sported since the mid-’50s... and had Cap wielding his original shield, previously seen only once, in ’41’s Captain America Comics #1. It was just a throwaway issue, a fun thing to do. Little did I realize what would come from it, half a decade down the line. But that’s more of that Nimzovich connection again. That chess grandmaster and the late Joseph Heller, author of Catch-22, have probably influenced my professional life more than any other non-comics artisans.

...Here We Come! In the piece reprinted in Alter Ego: The Comic Book Artist Collection I told how, in 1974-75, soon after stepping down as Marvel’s editor-in-chief in favor of a writer/editor contract, I talked Stan Lee into letting me develop a new mag called The Invaders, to co-star Timely/Marvel’s “Big Three” 1940s super-heroes and their kid sidekicks during World War II, with the action beginning a few weeks after Pearl Harbor. Frank Robbins was suggested as penciler, which was fine by me, though I signed on Vince Colletta as the original inker to bring Frank’s work a wee bit closer to the kind of artwork Marvel’s readers expected.

Al Avision’s cover for All Winners Comics #4 (Spring 1942) was the inspiration for the Frank Robbins/John Romita cover for Giant-size Invaders #1-andonly, which can be seen in various stages in Alter Ego: The CBA Collection. According to The Mint’s 2002 Millennium Catalog, Avison did the above re-creation of the 1942 scene circa 1980, and it is “the sole re-creation by Avison known to exist at this time.” To find out more about The Mint’s auctions, phone toll-free at (866) 355-4591 or e-mail <JayParrino.com>. [Art ©2003 estate of Al Avison; heroes TM & ©2003 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

to sympathize with our fannish scheme, any more than they’d have felt it worthwhile at that stage to discuss economic terms for having an actual JLA-Avengers crossover like the one that is finally happening now, twenty years after I was involved with the original one that got torpedoed in the 1980s. Out of the aforementioned party confab, I suspect, was born the Kang/Grand-Master chess match, which ran from The Avengers #69-71 (Oct.-Dec. 1969). After all, I needed a venue for the battle, and as a chessplayer since the eighth grade, I often tend to think in terms of the Royal Game. (In fact, I’ve often stated that much of my career in comics was based on principles I gleaned from grandmaster Aron Nimzovich’s 1930 chess classic My System, but that’s another article.) This isn’t the place to go into the creation of the Squadron Sinister. Suffice it to say that I drew costumed sketches of the four original members (Hyperion, Nighthawk, Dr. Spectrum, and a latter-day Whizzer) as a guide for penciler Sal Buscema, and that things went so well I followed up later with the Squadron Supreme. Denny, alas, never figured out a way to get around JLA editor Julius Schwartz with a fullscale homage/parody, so he settled for having Batman hit a crook with a C.A.-shield-like trashcan lid, plus a few other such physical bits, in a JLA fight scene... and few contemporary readers were ever aware of our cunning plan. Pity. Since a chess match consists of more than one game, though, I needed another opponent for The Avengers to face in a subsequent issue, so for Avengers #71 I dredged up the Golden Age incarnations of The Human Torch, Captain America, and Sub-Mariner and plopped them down in

Among vintage b&w photostats available to Marvel by the mid-’70s was this splash page from Marvel Mystery Comics #8 (June 1940), which showcased the first clash between Sub-Mariner and The Human Torch—with Bill Everett and Carl Burgos each drawing his own hero in the other’s story. The “Torch” side of the battle was reprinted in the 1997 trade paperback The Golden Age of Marvel (Vol. 1). A page or two is missing from the “Namor” stats, alas, so it hasn’t yet been reprinted from them. [©2003 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

(But Only in Comic Books!)

Atlantean Emperor appears to die in this story but was alive in comics published in the 1950s and since. But hey, we all know how ephemeral death is in comic books. To paraphrase a possum named Pogo: “It ain’t nohow permanent.” I’d doubtless have had to split some stories over two issues, to fill precisely twenty pages of future editions with old tales. But, as it turned out, that first issue (cover-dated June 1975) wasn’t even on the stands yet when, for reasons likewise unknown to me, the decision was made to convert the comic to the 25¢ size and price, with the very next ish. Naturally, it wouldn’t make sense to have a 32-pager called Giant-size Invaders, would it? I could roll with the punches, and besides, I got a second #1 out of the deal! But, sadly, I lost the chance to re-present the 1940s stories, except occasionally when the Dreaded Deadline Doom loomed. Fortunately, the photostats we’d found stuck around, partly in my hands, partly in Marvel’s, and became the basis of the two 1990s Golden Age of Marvel trade paperbacks and that nifty at-long-last Marvel Mystery Comics #1 which editor Tom Brevoort put together in 1999. (And if you haven’t picked up all three of these publications from Bud Plant or elsewhere, you’re no Golden Age fan by my reckoning!) But onward....

Yes, Master...

Ah, if only we’d had original-art photocopies like the one above to reprint from back in the late ’60s, sez Roy! The actual art to this Simon & Kirby splash from Captain America #6 (Sept. 1941) is, according to The Mint’s 2002 catalog, “one of only two known in existence at this time.” When this tale was reprinted in Fantasy Masterpieces #6 (Dec. 1966) from poorly-retouched art photostatted from the actual mags, the Comics Code forced Marvel to totally eliminate Fang’s gigantic head out of whose gaping, sharp-toothed maw Cap and Bucky were emerging, substituting the de-fanged circle art below it. They had to lose the strapped-down gal, too! Praise be to Uncle Sam that Marvel gorgeously reprinted all ten S&K issues in more recent years! How about more collections of Golden Age Timely material, guys? [©2003 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

(Frank Springer would ably assume the inking chores with the eighth issue.) For reasons unknown to me, then or now, it was decided the comic would debut as Giant-size Invaders #1, a 64-page bimonthly (instead of a 32-pager) selling for the hefty sum of 50¢, instead of the current 25¢. I was not unhappy about this pre-publication mutation, since it enabled me to showcase stories from ’40s Timely Comics as backups. On earlier trips to the Marvel warehouse, production manager John Verpoorten and I had unearthed photostats of a number of complete and semi-complete Golden Age tales, which I was eager to see back in print... the more so since the restoration work on old stories we had reprinted a few years earlier in Fantasy Masterpieces/Marvel Superheroes had been mediocre at best. I chose a dilly to shoehorn into that first issue: a 20-page Bill Everett saga from Sub-Mariner #1 (Spring 1941). I simply added an identifying intro on the splash—and a footnote to cover the fact that the proto-

In my earlier article, after covering the birth of The Invaders, I skipped to simply touching on a few “bullet highlights” in the series. This time around, I’d like to concentrate on one particular angle in some detail. One of the aspects of Invaders I most enjoyed was co-creating new villains and heroes, and egging on penciler Frank Robbins—a true talent who came in trailing clouds of glory from his years drawing the Johnny Hazard newspaper strip, topped off by excellent recent “Batman” work for the Distinguished Competition—to design them. Only occasionally (e.g., Union Jack) did I set pen to paper myself to design a character. With others, I just gave a vague general description or merely described what the hero/villain could do and left the rest to Frank. He invariably came through like a champ. Besides, he was even more of a World War II buff than I was, and he reveled in throwing in authentic background details which would have caused most artists (especially the younger ones, who often blanched at the mere thought of having to do actual R*E*S*E*A*R*C*H) to freeze up or try to fake it. Just paging through my bound volumes of The Invaders reminds me of the circumstances under which some of the villains and heroes were either revived or created, or at least recalls a relevant anecdote or two. First off, I believe that, pretty much from the get-go, I planned to have The Invaders encounter Axis super-types who were equivalents of either Marvel or DC heroes. I never even tried hard to hide what I was doing.

Bob Deschamps

An Interview with a Little-known but Fascinating Staff Artist of Marvel’s Golden Age! Interview Conducted & Transcribed by Jim Amash

“I Started as an Office Boy”

[INTERVIEWER’S NOTE: JIM AMASH: There’s precious What? You say you never little information around heard of Bob Deschamps? regarding your comic book Don’t be ashamed. Neither had career, which is why I was I—nor had I seen any biograsurprised when Dave Gantz phical information listed for told me about you. You must him anywhere, not even in not have signed your comic Jerry Bails’ indispensable book work. Who’s Who in American BOB DESCHAMPS: Well, I Comic Books! I didn’t even started at Timely Comics as a know he’d worked in comics, messenger/office boy. Gary till former Timely staffer Dave Keller lived on my block in Gantz (whom I interviewed Forest Hills and I showed him for A/E #13—thanks, Dave!) A rousing photo of some of the Berndt Toast Gang, 1994! (L. to r.:) Al Jaffee, some of my work. He said then and now a top cartoonist for Mad magazine (and a longtime Timely staffer told me about him. One reason there was an opening for an himself!)... Bob Deschamps, in his advertising days... and Art Cummings, he’s so unknown is that he cartoonist for Penthouse. Photo courtesy of Bob Deschamps. office boy at Timely Comics. I never signed his name to any of said I’d be interested in that, the many comics stories he and that’s how I got started at Timely. inked. It’s too bad we can’t distribute audio copies of our interview. If we did, Robert Gabriel Deschamps would have you crying as well Every night I would go home and practice penciling and inking, then as laughing at his stories (as I did several times in the course of intertake the work to the office for criticism from people who worked there. viewing him). Nobody has ever made me laugh more than Bob did as Eventually, I took some stuff in to Stan Lee, who liked it and said, he regaled me with great personal yarns about working at Timely in “Okay. Monday morning you start here as a staff inker.” I jumped up the 1940s. Thanks to him, we can give you a sense of what it was like and down and started running out of the office, and Stan yelled, “Wait! to do so; and we can all learn more about some of these people who Come back here. Where are you going?” I was just so damn happy, and fashioned dreams for millions of children—and maybe a few adults, too. Pardon me while I go get another hanky. —Jim.]

If the Mike Sekowsky-penciled page at left from Cowboy Romances #3 (March 1950) was inked by Bob Deschamps, even he couldn’t identify it at this late date— but Bob did sign some of his later advertising work, which was agented by Gerald & Culen Rapp, Inc., of New York. Timely expert Dr. Michael J. Vassallo, who provided copies of most of the comic art attributed to Deschamps for this article, believes that artist did indeed ink the page. [Cowboy Romances art ©2003 Marvel Characters, Inc.; advertising art ©2003 the respective copyright holder.]

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Title writer/editorial

A Personal Reminiscence of Dave Kaler’s 1965 Comicon Let’s let Frank Sinatra, perhaps the premier popular singer of the 20th century, bookend this piece: “Regrets? I’ve had a few....” For example, a part of me will always be sorry I didn’t make it to (if I even heard about, in advance) Bernie Bubnis’ 1964 New York Comicon, generally considered the first real comic book convention. But at least I made it to Dave Kaler’s 1965 con the next summer. Not because I had the initiative to travel from Missouri to the Big Apple to hobnob with comics fans and pros, mind you—but because, that spring, at age 24, I’d received a job offer from Mort Weisinger at DC Comics, which the Superman line editor and I had agreed would commence in late June. By coincidence, I’d be in Manhattan for the convention. So, from one of my last checks as a high school teacher, I paid a pittance to my aunt Olivia to sew me a costume for the masquerade which would be a part of the comicon. My hero of choice? Jack Cole’s Plastic Man. Flesh-colored tights would help me achieve Plas’ “no-toe” effect. An article that fan Tom Fagan wrote for Dave’s 1966 convention, received from Andy Yanchus for partial inclusion in this issue, reminded me that, besides donning a pair of sunglasses to stand in for Plas’ goggles, I actually darkened my hair from its natural dishwater blond. (Hmmm... maybe it’s just as well that no photos of me in that outfit have survived.) Not only was it sheer coincidence I was in town for the con—there were more happy coincidences to follow.

panel that he’d spent an evening at the apartment of Batman/Green Lantern co-creator Bill Finger. I’m fairly certain that’s the same time Dave and I were at Finger’s place... though I can’t recall much about it. (Part of the reason I draw a blank, I suspect, is because I was totally caught up in being a writer/editorial assistant to Stan Lee at Marvel, to which I had jumped after two weeks at DC. Interested as I was in old comics and their history, my head was full to the brim with my day job in the selfsame field. I wish it had been otherwise.) Either before or after the convention, Jerry, his wife Sondra, and I made a joint foray to see Sammy Davis, Jr., in the Broadway musical Golden Boy. In 1961 I had envied Jerry and Sondra going to New York and seeing Richard Burton and Julie Andrews in Camelot, and An Evening with Mike Nichols and Elaine May. Now a transplanted Manhattanite myself, I was striving to make up for lost time. Comics weren’t nearly all I loved about New York!

“Kaler, left, is given comic books from a shelf by Roy Thomas as Dennis O’Neil watches.” That cutline appeared beneath this photo in the Nov. 4, 1965 edition of Newsday, a New York City area newspaper. It accompanied an article on Dave Kaler titled “Comicdom’s Cult of Collectors,” written soon after Denny joined the Marvel staff, following Roy’s mailing him the same “writer’s test” that had gotten Roy his own job there. The entire article can be seen in Bill Schelly’s acclaimed 1995 book The Golden Age of Comic Fandom—which has just gone out of print.

My second weekend in New York, early July now, I was invited for dinner at the Coney Island apartment of Phil and Carole Seuling. In letters we’d exchanged, I’d found Phil (a high school teacher and used-comics dealer) a mite brusque for my taste, but in person that trait was leavened by his intelligence and good heart... and Carole, whom I disappointed by not eating all the food she heaped in front of me, was at least equally enjoyable company.

The Comicon itself was a delight, even though it occurred during a heat wave and took place at the Hotel Broadway Central, which had seen better days (indeed, better centuries). Nowadays Carole Seuling drops by Dann’s and my South Carolina digs twice a year; she can still remember that, when you climbed the hotel’s stairs, the steps creaked beneath your feet if you walked in the center—so people tended to squeeze over against the wall, to play it safe.

Just as, in the ensuing months, Tom Fagan wrote his remembrances of the con, while fellow fan Rick Weingroff listed 57 things he recalled about it, I’ve always had a few stand-out memories of the 1965 New York Comicon. One of these, surprisingly, turned out to be not quite accurate. For decades I’ve repeated a story, related on the writers’ panel, about how a comics artist once misinterpreted a script and drew an inexplicable archer on the roof of a building—but I’ve always attributed its telling to Bill Finger, since it concerns the use of film terminology, more Finger’s métier than that of his fellow panelists Gardner Fox and Otto Binder.

Another guest that evening was Dave Kaler, the 29-year-old fan and market research worker who was putting on the convention. He and I hit it off, not least because he had tied the convention in with the Academy of Comic Book Fans and Collectors, a loosely-knit organization that Alter Ego founder Jerry Bails had launched from a suggestion of mine a few years earlier. I was temporarily ensconced at the George Washington Hotel on 23rd Street in Manhattan, Dave lived on the Lower East Side, and by the time the two of us reached “the city” via subway, he had invited me to move into his cavernous ground-floor apartment on East 2nd Street, off Avenue A. As Dave’s roomie, I got a bit more involved in the three-weeks-away comicon. But, though Fagan refers to me as “co-host,” any such title was purely honorary.

However, some months ago, Jerry Bails ran across an old reel-to-reel tape, 7" in diameter and 11⁄2 hours long on each side, which contained a recording of that historic panel (with a fan-and-pros panel on the other side), apparently made by local fan Mark Hanerfeld on behalf of the Academy. When I finally got that historic tape transferred to audiocassette, I was shocked to learn it was Fox, not Finger, who told the archer story. My confusion was caused by the fact that Finger immediately tells another tale to “top” Fox’s, and does indeed utter one (paraphrased) line I had always ascribed to him: “If you tell an artist to draw, he’ll just draw.”

Actually, though I’d be even hazier about it if not for clues in the vintage pieces that follow, the convention started earlier for some of us than for others. For instance, Jerry mentions on the first-day writers’

It was strange hearing again, for the first time in decades, voices which had been so familiar to me during my first days in New York: Gardner, who had graciously invited me to his and wife Lynda’s home in Yonkers

It Was A Very Good Year...

3 of the big July 4th comicons he was throwing by then, and he took Dann and me to lunch at the restaurant atop the World Trade Center—the only time I was ever there.

for dinner... Otto, that equally gentle soul who had hosted me at “The House That Captain Marvel Built” in Englewood, New Jersey... Mort Weisinger, whose gruff voice on tape, to my delight, failed to evoke in me the Pavlovian reaction I’d experienced during my eight days of working for him more than a third of a century before.

All this came rushing back when I saw Phil on that videotape, looking just as I always remembered him. Vital. Alive. “The way we were,” as Barbra Streisand (and Marvin Hamlisch) would say. Until I did so prior to writing this piece, I haven’t rewatched the footage in the three years since I received it. I found it too painful.

I’ve always recalled the CBS-TV crew that surged about the con, insisting that everything be done and redone for its convenience. That first day I wore a Fantastic Four t-shirt, so new a merchandising item it hadn’t yet been seen in any comics; and when the female reporter accosted me about it, I didn’t let on I worked for Marvel. Acting like the compleat fan, I gushed about how great Marvel Comics were... though none of my spiel made it onto the news, I think.

Sunday is even more of a blur. I saw snatches of some of the serials being screened, but I was preoccupied. I do recall the pros-and-fans panel that evening. I clearly remember sitting next to Creepy publisher Jim Warren, with whom I did a bit of (reasonably) good-natured sparring. At some point, when I said something he disagreed with, he pretended to bury a dagger in my back. There would be times, a few years later when Marvel entered the black-&-white comics field, when he might have wished for a real dagger, but basically my memories of Jim are good ones, renewed and invigorated when we ran into each other at a con a year or so back.

Then, in 1999, a thoughtful fan named Joe Azzato, who had been at the con (though I don’t know him personally), sent me, out of the blue, a blurred videotape he had made for me. While transferring some old home movies to video, he had recognized me on them. (Why he should have recognized me, I have no idea.) On that piece of film were recorded several minutes of slow-motion footage taken at the 1965 comicon!

It’s difficult to describe the emotions that raced Gil Kane’s pencils for a 1999 version of through me as I viewed that silent footage for the That was doubtless the day I met Gil Kane, too, one of his late-1960 concept sketches for the six-inch Silver Age Atom, which he first time. A window abruptly opened onto 1965— though all I can recall is him in the front row facing always insisted he did on his own, even if it was destined to remain open only for a few our panel and shaking his head vigorously when I without input from editor Julie Schwartz precious moments. I beheld my gawky self in that recounted the Jerry Bails/Roy Thomas version of or anyone else. See the inked illo in Alter F.F. t-shirt... and I saw the CBS reporter... though the creation of the Silver Age Atom—and his being Ego, V3#2—still available wherever back not the two of us together. Behind me was an exhibit invited to join the panel, something he was clearly issues are sold (namely, via booth, where the original of Biljo White’s Marvel itching to do. Gil would later become a friend and TwoMorrows Publishing’s house ads Family cover for Alter Ego [Vol. 1] #7 was proudly frequent collaborator, but that day we didn’t in this very mag)! [Art ©2003 estate of exchange a single word on the panel. I’m sure that pinned up for display alongside a copy of the Gil Kane; Atom TM & ©2003 DC Comics.] off-panel, too, it was just “hello/goodbye.” fanzine. At the time both were only a year old. The camera panned about, but I didn’t recognize anyone That was probably the night Dave Kaler, Will Elder, and I went pubelse, not even those I came to know better later... guys like Marv crawling through Greenwich Village, having a great good time, with Will Wolfman, Len Wein, Jim Steranko. telling lots of great stories about EC and Harvey Kurtzman that I’d give at least a finger joint to have on tape... or even just remember. And then came the clincher: A half minute or so of footage from the masquerade event that night. Suddenly, out from behind a curtain, as if landing from a great height, bounds none other than Captain Marvel—sporting a rakish beard. It’s Phil Seuling, in the costume seen in the photo on p. 7, grinning broadly and acting mock-heroic and thoroughly enjoying himself. Those few seconds of film brought a tear to my eyes, for it caused a mental instantreplay of all the good times Phil and I had shared: Friday poker games at his apartment, first on my own (later with my first wife Jean), with Carole and their daughters Gwen and Heather sitting 10-15 feet away, watching that new series Star Trek on TV; Poring over Phil’s roomful of vintage comics before and after poker sessions (buying a run of early Green Lanterns one night when I won— paying him off with the Namor/Hulk drawing Bill Everett had done for me on another when I lost); The sadness I felt when he and Carole split up; His insistence on loaning me $1000 to ease my moving to L.A. in 1976, a generous act that came out of nowhere, since I hadn’t asked him for anything; One of our last encounters, in 1978, when I was guest of honor at one

But by then, the con was over. Time for everyone to go home. For most attendees, ’twas time to put comics on the back burner and return to making a living. Me? I went back to Dave’s apartment where I slept on a mattress on the floor... but, unlike most other con-goers, the next morning I would get up and don a suit and tie and take the subway uptown to 625 Madison Avenue and walk into the Marvel offices, where I’d remove my coat, roll up my sleeves, and stand to Stan Lee’s left while he discoursed about the pages he’d dialogued that weekend and explained to production manager Sol Brodsky (who always stood on his right) the changes that had to be made to an inked story he had proofread at home. Yeah, when I woke up, I was still dreaming. I was one of the lucky ones. 1965. Back to Sinatra. On his big TV special that autumn, he would sing a new song: “It was a very good year.” And, you know, by God, it was. Bestest,

A Full-Service New York Comics Convention––Hurrah!

a brand new pro, Roy Thomas... another person breaking into the field, Len Brown... and, of course, the fabulous Flo Steinberg from Marvel. [tumultuous applause] I hope you have a special welcome for Mr. Jim Warren, publisher of Creepy comics... I also have Mr. Woody Gelman, who did ‘The Dodo and the Frog’ for many years at DC ... Mr. Bill Harris, former editor of Gold Key... Mr. Murphy Anderson... [the fans went wild] ... Mr. Larry Ivie... and, although he’s not a professional as we know them, Mr. Len Darvin of the Comics Code Authority...” [somewhat reluctant applause] Then the choices were announced, as follows: Best Adventure Hero book: Amazing Spider-Man Best Editor: Stan Lee Best Writer: Stan Lee Best Pencil Artist: Carmine Infantino Best Inking Artist: Murphy Anderson Best Short Story: “Doorway to the Unknown”—Flash #148 Best Novel:“Captain America Joins the Avengers” —Avengers #4 Best Giant Comic: Spider-Man Annual #1 Best Hero: Spider-Man Best Villain: Dr. Doom Best Group: Fantastic Four Best Character:The Thing Best Fanzine: Alter Ego #7 After the announcements, Kaler invited Flo to the podium to speak on behalf of Marvel. She said, “I thank you very much. We all do. Unfortunately, Stan couldn’t be here, as you may or may not have noticed. He does most of our writing on weekends. The books are late, so we had no choice. But we’re very grateful for the honor. Stan thinks very highly, as we all do, of fandom. And we just hope you’ll keep on enjoying our books, because we enjoy bringing them to you very, very much.”

or he would have flown in for sure... and that is Bill White. Therefore I consider the award just as much for Bill as for me.” Biljo, besides publishing and editing Batmania, was art editor of A/E V1#7-9. When the Alley speeches were over, David assembled those who were to participate in the final event of the Comicon, a symposium entitled “Comics and Fandom: Where Do We Go from Here?” Kaler moderated the panel, which consisted of Rick Weingroff and Roy Thomas (for the fan point of view), and Jim Warren, Murphy Anderson, and Bill Harris (representing the professionals’ viewpoint). Other fans and pros contributed their bits from the audience. [NOTE: See the abbreviated panel transcript beginning on pp. 30.] What emerged from this first public examination of the relationship that fandom had—if any—to the types of comic books published, was that neither the fans or pros had a very great understanding of each other. Fans didn’t realize that their views represented only a very small percentage of the readership of any given comic book; the pros could not have known that fandom would continue unabated, and that it would provide the training ground for most of the younger generation of creators who would break into the field over the next decade-plus. Still, the attempt at communication was being made, and that was enough to make the panel a success. Shortly after 9:00, the first complete comic book convention was officially over. It had been a stellar gathering of fans and pros, and provided a way for even the poorest fan to eyeball the great rare comics of the Golden Age. Now the costumes would be put away, the dealers’ boxes of rare comics would be transported back to Brooklyn, or Cleveland, or Detroit. Fans would disperse, many eventually circulating numerous photographs of the history-making event. (We only wish we had been able to garner more of them in time for this article. If anyone out there has any others....) For his part, David Kaler had completed his year as executive secretary of the Academy of Comic-Book Fans and Collectors. Now it was Paul Gambaccini’s turn at the helm. Kaler continued to organize conventions in 1966 and 1967, but soon others got into the act, as well: John Benson, with a well-done convention in 1966, and Calvin Beck with a disastrous one that same year. Then, in 1968, a new era in New York comics conventions began when Phil Seuling and associates formed a group called SCARP (The Society of Comic Art Research and Preservation) to put on the only New York Comicon of the year. SCARP would last only for that single convention, but Seuling would pick up the reins and host what would be, for a number of years, the biggest comics convention in the U.S., if not the world.

When Murphy Anderson was introduced, he said in accepting his Alley award: “Words fail me. I’m not much of a speaker, but I certainly do appreciate the honor that you have given me... and I’m sure I speak for Carmine, also. We’ll simply try to keep on giving you the very best that we have. Thank you very much.” Next, Roy Thomas said a few words about the fanzine Alley given to Alter Ego [Vol. 1] #7, which he had edited and published the previous autumn: “I have been very lucky in publishing Alter Ego, in that I have one of fandom’s most outstanding artists, a person who wanted to be here very much, but because of seniority problems [he was a fireman in Columbia, Missouri] could not be here,

Over the years, comics conventions have even been featured in comics—as per this cover for Archie #471 (May 1998), reproduced from a photocopy of the original Stan Goldberg/Henry Scarpelli art. But it all started with those New York cons back in ’64 and ’65! [©2003 Archie Comic Publications, Inc.]

Thus began a proud tradition—at the dilapidated Broadway Central Hotel, in middle of the long, hot summer of 1965.

Creators Panel

1 The 5 96

mic Co ork wY o Ne rt T w

The First-ever “Creators Panel” at a Comics Convention–––Featuring Tape Furnished by Jerry G. Bails Transcribed by Tim Easterday Edited by Roy Thomas

OTTO BINDER, GARDNER FOX, BILL FINGER, & MORT WEISINGER

The Golden Age origins of Superman, Batman, Captain Marvel, The Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, and Green Arrow, and the Silver Age origin of The Atom—all heroes co-created or (in the case of Supes and Cap) developed in a major way by the four 1965 panelists—were reprinted in the 1976 hardcover Secret Origins of the Super DC Heroes. The origins of the Silver Age versions of the 1940s heroes, which were depicted on the cover along with Wonder Woman and Plastic Man, were included, as well. Art by Neal Adams. [©2003 DC Comics.]

[INTRODUCTION: Since the closest thing to a discussion panel at the groundbreaking 1964 New York Comicon had been a chalk talk by veteran artist Tom Gill, and a few words by a non-pro Marvel “intern,” the transcript you are about to read is a noteworthy comicshistorical document. It represents probably the first “creators panel” at a comics convention—which makes it all the more remarkable that all those scheduled to appear on it were not artists, but writers. [This panel, moderated by A/E’s founder, Dr. Jerry Bails, was to feature three of the earliest and most influential comics writers—Otto Binder, major scripter of “Captain Marvel,” “Marvel Family,” and various features for Fawcett and other companies since the 1940s, and a pulp science-fiction author before that; Bill Finger, long credited as co-creator of the original “Green Lantern” and “Wildcat” and soon to be widely acknowledged as the co-creator of “Batman,” as well;

and Gardner F. Fox, co-creator of the original “Flash, “Hawkman,” “Dr. Fate,” “Justice Society of America,” “The Face,” “Skyman,” and other Golden Age features. All were still active in the field—Binder writing Mighty Samson for Western/Gold Key as well as stories for DC’s “Superman” line; Finger scribing “mystery” tales, Challengers of the Unknown, and the occasional “Batman” for DC; and Fox in demand on Justice League of America, The Atom, Hawkman, the imminent Spectre revival, et al. No gathering of more important Golden Age writers (or just comics writers, period) could have been imagined—then or now! [Unfortunately, like many of the best-laid plans of mice and supermen, this one went slightly awry. Bill Finger, notable for being perennially late on deadlines, failed to show up by the panel’s starting time. While it was in progress, “Superman” group editor

Captain Marvel Jr.

Comics (wherein Junior starred in one story per month) had supervillain stories, straight crime stories, crime stories featuring lawful businessmen, juvenile crime, murder mysteries, and fantastic crime tales.

by Don Ensign Edited by P.C. Hamerlinck Part II

Sagas And Super-Villains [NOTE: Last issue Don discussed the artists of the post-World War II career of Captain Marvel Jr., who lasted (with the rest of The Marvel Family) until late 1953, when Fawcett Publications ceased production of comic books. He also discussed Junior’s origin in Whiz Comics #25 in 1941, and the personality and super-powers of the young hero, with his alter ego of Freddy Freeman, the “crippled newsboy,” and with the feature’s supporting characters. This time he deals with many of the stories and super-villains of the second half of Cap Junior’s Shazam-powered career in Master Comics and Captain Marvel Jr., though not with material that appeared in The Marvel Family. —PCH.]

Genres for Junior The post-World War II stories of Captain Marvel Jr. followed the popular genres of the period. Perhaps this is one reason Junior endured, while many other superheroes were relegated to literary limbo by their publishers. By 1949-50, instead of replacing the CMJ comic (as All-Star Comics became All-Star Western, and Captain America metamorphosed briefly into Captain America’s Weird Tales) with other genres, Fawcett adapted many of the young superhero’s stories to reflect what was currently popular. The late ’40s and early ’50s saw a surge in crime comics that depicted the world of urban crime and law enforcement. Both Captain Marvel Jr. and Master

During this same period, supernatural horror comics were having their heyday, so CMJ and Master also made forays into that field. Straight science-fiction gained some popularity, with Fawcett writers creating “Junior” stories with sci-fi themes. CMJ boasted funny (and not-so-funny) animal stories. There were split-genre stories that combined western locales with supernatural themes... and stories with themes of romance and teen humor. Some story themes in the “Captain Marvel Jr.” corpus didn’t reflect outside genres so much as they did internal company policy directives and the inclination of the editors and writers. According to the official guidelines (Fawcett Companion, p. 25), Junior’s stories “should have strong human interest plots” and stories centering on Captain Marvel Jr. himself. Also, “Fantasy lends itself to Junior stories, but it should be more serious type of fantasy than the light whimsy found in Captain Marvel.” Both humaninterest tales and fantasy (and light whimsy) were found in the post-war “CMJ” tales. And there is one last genre I’d call “inventions gone awry.” These featured tales of inventions made for benevolent purposes but which were used for malevolent schemes. While the 1942 Fawcett Comics Writer’s Guidelines suggested using Nazis and other war-related foes, it also emphasized thematic variety in the “Junior” stories. It is remarkable, by 1946, how little the greatest war in history is mentioned. The war was over—it was time to move on.

Bound and Gagged

In 1980 C.C. Beck did this preliminary sketch for a re-creation of the cover of Master Comics #23 (Feb. 1942), Cap Jr.’s first real solo story. In #22 he had helped Bulletman defeat Captain Nazi. But Junior would keep going way beyond the war’s end. [Art ©2003 estate of C.C. Beck; Cap, Cap Jr., & Shazam TM & ©2003 DC Comics.]

While there is a surprising amount of variety in themes in the “Captain Marvel Jr.” stories, there are also reoccurring formulistic “situations.” Beyond the obligatory shouting out of “Captain Marvel!” to transform Freddy into the

Sagas And Super-Villains

World’s Mightiest Boy (as he was often called—his equivalent of Cap Sr.’s “The World’s Mightiest Mortal”), there was the “bound and gagged” motif. Once Freddy summoned Junior, he usually dealt with the evildoers in the matter of a few panels. Of the 86 stories sampled, twenty use the bound-and-gagged motif. Of course, there are many riffs on this motif. A number of the bound-and-gagged stories also had Freddy being hit over the head and rendered unconscious, but others did not. Several had Freddy being knocked on the head and bound but not gagged (CMJ #65, CMJ #67). The bound-and-gagged motif was devised to lend some suspense to the stories. How would Freddy loosen his gag in time to prevent his own (and sometimes others’) imminent death by summoning his alter ego? Were these escapes credible? One problem is that the way Freddy loosens his gag sometimes seems certain to cause injury to his face and/or other body parts. In one story he is dragged face-down behind a speeding car. This loosens the gag, but amazingly the newsboy suffers no injury (CMJ #39). In several instances, fire or molten metal (CMJ #40, #94) burns his gag away, but Freddy’s face is somehow unscathed. Occasionally the un-gagging does have some plausibility. When Freddy is in danger of being run over by a train, he notices a nearby railroad spike onto which he can snag the gag (CMJ #63). Also, as he is being shoved into a giant wind machine, the terrific air currents it generates blows his gag loose just in time for him to call on Junior (CMJ #96). However, some of his gag escapes aren’t particularly likely—like hooking his gag on a sharp rock after being pushed into a pitch-black mine shaft (CMJ #38). Sometimes the writers would come up with a creative way to have Freddy bound but not gagged. In one story he develops a case of uncontrollable hiccups (CMJ #65) and is unable to call on Junior till the villain threatens to pour boiling hot water down his throat to render the newsboy mute. This literally scares the hiccups out of Freddy, and only then is he able to become Cap Junior.

Super-villains—Starting with Still Another Sivana As might be supposed, Junior Sivana, the miscreant son of the World’s Wickedest Scientist, Dr. Thaddeus Budog Sivana, was Captain Marvel Jr.’s most frequently-reoccurring super-villain. Sivana Jr. was a young, highly intelligent, but thoroughly mean-spirited geek. With the exception of his Danny Kaye-like features and wavy brown hair, he was a younger clone of his father. His defining features were his obsession to become “the Prince of the Universe” and his intense jealousy of Cap Jr. Sivana Jr. was presented as a sort of demented master chemist and inventor who could formulate sinister potions and construct destructive machines to plague mankind in general and the World’s Mightiest Boy in particular. In possibly his first appearance, in CMJ (#36), he provides “Jitterbug Pills” to teenagers, which greatly boosts their energy for dancing. The problem: they can’t stop dancing! He sends one of the parents a note saying he will provide an antidote for $50,000. During this story Sivana Jr. knocks Freddy unconscious, then binds and gags him. He forces Freddy to swallow a Jitterbug Pill, causing the lame newsboy to start dancing. The dance gyrations shake Freddy’s gag loose, and he calls for Junior, who saves the day by getting the antidote for the dance-exhausted teenagers and hauling Sivana Jr. off to reform school. Sivana Jr. vows he will escape: “You’ll hear from me again, Captain Marvel Jr.!” He does, of course. In CMJ #39, envious of Cap Jr.’s well-publicized triumphs, Junior Sivana comes up with a scheme to steal the headlines from the World’s Mightiest Boy. He claims he is reforming and “proves” it—by betraying his father, Dr. Sivana! Sivana Jr. grabs the headlines, but later springs his father from jail and plans to kill Freddy Freeman in ambush. Freddy calls Junior in time to stop a bullet aimed at him by the

Even when Brazilian comics continued Cap Jr.’s adventures with new stories ~o~ Marvel Magazine for several years after Fawcett had folded and art in Capita~ its comic-book tents, Freddy was still being bound and gagged when Junior found some lame (writer’s) excuse to change back into the newsboy. In this tale created by tracing the art of Bud Thompson, the crooks are smart enough to gag Freddy to keep him mum—then stupid enough to take off his gag to ask him a question. Note that, in Brazil, Freddy’s magic word was “Shazam!” just like Billy and Mary Batson’s—though the lightning bolt is pretty ragged! Art provided by John G. Pierce. [Captain Marvel Jr. is TM & ©2003 DC Comics.]

elder Sivana. Junior nabs the father-and-son duo and returns them to prison. When Sivana Jr. becomes frustrated by his skinny, weakling physique in Master Comics #93, he concocts a chemical formula which transforms him into a towering Goliath, dwarfing houses and trees. He goes on a thieving rampage, but soon becomes aware of a drawback caused by his huge stature: an all-consuming hunger. Marvel Jr. assists a chemist friend in making an antidote for the ravenous Sivana Jr.—then takes his normal, skinny, weakling self back to reform school. The World’s Wickedest Boy steals entire railroad trains and converts them into machine guns and cannons in another power bid before he is stopped by Cap Jr. (CMJ #63). He uses a robot to try to kill Freddy, but because of the newsboy’s kindness to the mechanical man, the latter goes against his master’s wishes (CMJ #93). The robot, Mr. Tinny, was clearly patterned after the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz movie. In CMJ #98 Sivana Jr. injects apples with an “intense hunger formula” that causes both Freddy and his alter ego to go on an uncontrollable eating binge. In “The Ghost of Sivana Jr.” (CMJ #99) he projects gigantic phantom images of himself, and indeed takes on an almost anti-Christ aura. When he is first thought dead, Cap Jr. thinks, “I haven’t caught anything but

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