Issuu

Daredevil & Sub-Mariner TM & ©2006 Marvel Characters, Inc.; Atoma & caricatures ©2007 Estate of Bob Powell; Sheena TM & ©2007 Paul Aratow/Columbia Pictures; The Shadow TM & ©2007 Advance Magazine Publishers, Inc./The Condé Nast Publications; Mr. Mystic TM & ©2007 Will Eisner Studios, Inc; other art ©2007 the respective copyright holders

Roy Thomas’ Daring Comics Fanzine

THE PEERLESS POWER OF

BOB POWELL

PLUS:

In the USA

6.95

No. 66 March 2007

Vol. 3, No. 66 / March 2007

™

Editor Roy Thomas

Associate Editors Bill Schelly Jim Amash

Design & Layout Christopher Day

Consulting Editor John Morrow

FCA Editor P.C. Hamerlinck

Comic Crypt Editor Michael T. Gilbert

Editorial Honor Roll Jerry G. Bails (founder) Ross Foss, Biljo White

Editor Emeritus Mike Friedrich

Production Assistant Chris Irving

Circulation Director Bob Brodsky, Cookiesoup Periodical Distribution, LLC

Cover Artist Bob Powell (adapted by Michael T. Gilbert]

Cover Colorist Tom Ziuko

With Special Thanks to: Heidi Amash Denis Kitchen Bill Aguilera Ed Lane Dave Baker Jim Ludwig Alberto Becattini Bettina Lussier Jack Bender Bruce Mason Bill Black Shelly Moldoff Dominic Bongo Frank Motler Chris Brown Dave O’Dell Nick Caputo Dennis O’Neil Gregg Clifford Edith Penty John Cochran Jay Piscopo Mike Conroy John Powell J. Randolph Cox Kyle Powell Mike & Carole Robert Powell Curtis Seth Powell Al Dellinges Ken Quattro Tony DeMaria Ethan Roberts Blanche Fago Herb Rogoff D’Ann Calhoun Fago Scott Rowland Michael Feldman Ramon Schenk Florence Feustel Jim Simon Gary Friedrich Joe Simon David George Marc Swayze Janet Gilbert Stan Taylor George Hagenauer Dann Thomas Jennifer Hamerlinck Anthony Tollin Paul Handler Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. Peter Hansen Dr. Michael J. Heritage Comics Vassallo Roger Hill Hames Ware Jonathan G. Jensen Cat Yronwode

This issue is dedicated to the memory of

Bob Powell

Contents Writer/Editorial. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 The Peerless Power Of Bob Powell. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Expert Ed Lane on one of the most prolific (and best!) artists of the Golden Age.

The Flyin’ Fool Cover Art. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Roger Hill tells how a long-lost Powell illo was finally restored—and published!

Bob Powell: A Brief Stopover In The Marvel Age . . . . . . . . 42 Nick Caputo investigates an enigma: Why didn’t Powell ever draw a solo Daredevil tale?

Comic Crypt: The Powell Family Album! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Michael T. Gilbert hosts a family reunion with photos—four sons and two Mrs. Powell.

“Make Mine Magazine Management!” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Editor David George on the “good ol’ days” at Martin Goodman’s magazine empire.

“We’ll Just Get It Done!” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Jim Amash talks to Blanche Fago about Al & Vince Fago and Charlton Comics.

FCA [Fawcett Collectors Of America]. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 P.C. Hamerlinck presents Marc Swayze, a Marvel Family mystery—and Bob Powell! On Our Cover: As detailed on pp. 43-44, Bob Powell worked with another master comic artist, Wally Wood, on several 1965 issues of Daredevil, but always inked by Wally. Since so much of Powell’s style depended on his powerful inking, both Michael T. Gilbert and A/E editor Roy Thomas wondered what a “purely Powell” DD would’ve looked like. Thus, since the mid-1950s Magazine Enterprises hero The Avenger looked so much like Daredevil, Michael used digital magic to transform the one into the other for this issue’s cover… also peopling the page with [left to right] Shock Gibson, Atoma, Sub-Mariner, Avenger (as himself this time), Scarlet Arrow, baby John Powell (see pp. 46 & 51), The Man in Black, Sheena & her chimp Chim, Black Cat, The Shadow (minus mask), The Spirit of ’76, and Mr. Mystic—plus a selfcaricature of the artist. Something for everybody! [Daredevil & Sub-Mariner art ©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.; Sheena art ©2007 Paul Aratow/Columbia Pictures; Mr. Mystic art ©2007 Will Eisner Studios, Inc.; other characters art ©2007 the respective copyright holders.] Above: The hopefully familiar cover of The Avenger #3 (a.k.a. A-1 Comics #133), Magazine Enterprises’ short-lived 1955 super-hero, drawn by Bob Powell. This “robot robber” (also seen on p. 13) is one of the best-designed robots in any vintage comic… and, Roy T. admits, was the major visual inspiration of “the Ultimate Ultron” in The Avengers #68 (Sept. 1969). Thanks to Mike Conroy and Ken Quattro for the scan. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.] Alter EgoTM is published monthly 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. Single issues: $9 ($11.00 outside the US). Twelve-issue subscriptions:$72 US, $132 Canada, $144 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. ISSN: 1932-6890 FIRST PRINTING.

writer/editorial

Putting The “POW” In “Powell” B

Robert, John, Kyle, and Seth—a deluge of photos which Michael T. Gilbert has turned into a double-length edition of “Comic Crypt.” Between all those pics, the Powell pieces written by Roger Hill and Nick Caputo, and a cascade of images sent by several generous collectors, we wound up with far more art and photos than we could print—

ack in the day, Bob Powell never ceased to amaze me.

During the 1950s, he seemed to be literally everywhere! Well, maybe not at National/DC (although evidently he did a turn or two for them, as well), but Powell’s signature with that distinctive squiggle at the end of the final “L” was emblazoned on stories in many of the comics I picked up. He even did a pair of “Sub-Mariner” tales for the 1954 super-hero revival—and I saw a fair amount of his work for Harvey, as well.

But it was for Magazine Enterprises in particular that he drew a sizable percentage of the comics I purchased when I could scrape together enough spare dimes. The short-lived The Avenger (after one issue by another artist I liked, Dick Ayers) and Strong Man—the voluptuous Cave Girl and Thun’da (the latter after the difficult-tofollow Frazetta)—Westerns like Bobby Benson’s BBar-B Riders: when Powell expert Ed Lane, in this issue, calls the artist’s ME work “the epitome of Powell,” he knows whereof he speaks. It’s an especial pleasure to have been supplied by the four Powell sons—

—with the unusual result that, next issue, Michael and I will feature a fabulous Powell follow-up to this issue’s already-stupendous selection. (See next-issue ad below; our letters section will return next month, too.) I’m also proud to present editor David George’s memoir of his time at Martin Goodman’s Magazine Management during the 1960s & ’70s. When I went to work for Stan Lee in 1965, Marvel Comics was at most one-third of that larger, multi-faceted company—and it didn’t seem that proportion was likely to shift anytime soon. It did—but I feel an examination of Goodman’s magazine empire is long overdue. So I’ll get out of your way and let you get to it…. Bestest,

COMING IN APRIL

LEAVE IT TO

BOB OKSNER! FROM JERRY LEWIS TO THE JUSTICE LEAGUE! • Jolting OKSNER cover art of the JLA—and friends! • BOB OKSNER tells JIM AMASH all about his Golden & Silver Age work on Supergirl, Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane, All-Star Comics, Hawkman, Leave It to Binky, Angel and the Ape, Bob Hope, Jerry Lewis, & Shazam!—also about SHELLY MAYER, JULIE SCHWARTZ, CARMINE INFANTINO, C.C. BECK, GIL KANE, IRWIN HASEN, LEE ELIAS, JOE ORLANDO, et al.! • BOB POWELL—Part II! MICHAEL T. GILBERT continues paging through the Powell Family Album—and Alter Ego examines letters exchanged between POWELL, WILL EISNER, & Quality publisher BUSY ARNOLD! • Plus—FCA with JEFF SMITH, MARC SWAYZE, & C.C. BECK—BILL SCHELLY on the boys at the Yancy Street Journal—& MORE!! Edited by ROY THOMAS

Comics, Inc.]

NOTE: IF YOU PREFER A SIX-ISSUE SUB, JUST CUT THE PRICE IN HALF!

TwoMorrows. Celebrating The Art & History Of Comics. TwoMorrows • 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 USA • 919-449-0344 • FAX: 919-449-0327 • E-mail: twomorrow@aol.com • www.twomorrows.com

The Peerless Power Of BOB POWELL A Remembrance Of One Of The Most Skilled And Prolific Of Golden Age Artists A Personal Appreciation by Ed Lane (with special thanks to Peter Hansen)

et me begin this article by momentarily indulging in some personal nostalgia. I became addicted to the art of Bob Powell in about 1946. At the time, I thought that he was one of the best comic book artists in the business—and now, over 55 years later, I am still convinced my judgment was correct. Even today, his work still ranks with the best. For twenty years, Powell was so prolific that I could not keep up with buying all his work off the newsstands. But I doggedly stuck to my task, and this two-part article sees the publication of all of the data I have accumulated in the intervening time frame. The first part of this article deals with Powell the artist: Who was he? Where did he come from? How did he get started? Who worked for him? This section includes a sampling of the very few interviews Powell ever gave on his life and art.

Cheesecake, Beefcake, & Bob Powell The artist, circa 1960, in his Williston Park studio—flanked by primo examples of his art drawn 15 years apart: (Left:) Splash for Fiction House’s Jumbo Comics #25 (March 1941). Powell signed the final page of this “Sheena” tale; “W. Morgan Thomas” was a house name. The identities of the scripters of most stories mentioned in this article are unknown. (Right:) The wordless cover art for Magazine Enterprises’ 1955 The Avenger #4 (a.k.a. A-1 Comics #138), as restored for AC Comics’ The Avenger #0 – Special Ashcan Edition (1996). Thanks to Jonathan G. Jensen and Bill Black for the respective art scans, and to Seth Powell for the photo. [Sheena TM & ©2007 Paul Aratow/Columbia Pictures; retouched Avenger art ©2007 AC Comics & estate of Vin Sullivan.]

One Of The Most Skilled And Prolific Of Golden Age Artists

With a brush, his style became a less stilted, more flowing, and dynamic one, which epitomized those golden years from 1945 to 1955. A great many early comics characters bore the Powell moniker, such as “Dr. Fung” and “Secret Agent D-13” at Fox; “Gale Allen,” “Camilla,” and “Inspector Drayton” at Fiction House; also “Abdul the Arab,” “Lee Preston,” “Betty Bates,” and “Spin Shaw” at Quality. Many early Powell stories have the by-line “W. Morgan Thomas,” which was an Eisner shop name that Powell adopted for himself. Early “Sheena” and Mr. Mystic stories carried the “Thomas” credit, but Powell’s tiny signature can often be found discreetly tucked away in a panel of the story. When Eisner started his own studio after dissolving his partnership with Jerry Iger, Powell went with him. Powell went freelance in 1941, starting his own studio and working for the Harvey brothers before joining the Army in 1942. After leaving the service in late 1945, he relaunched his studio, working mostly for Harvey, but also for Street & Smith, Timely/Marvel, and other publishers. When the bottom fell out of the comic book market in the mid-’50s, Powell turned his focus to commercial art. In the early ’60s he did some work for Sick magazine, and in the mid-’60s drew a number of stories for Marvel Comics. From January 1966 until his death, Bob Powell was art director at Sick, which in its February 1966 issue printed an article about his joining the magazine. That piece is reprinted in full on p. 47 of this issue of Alter Ego.

A Letter To Jerry DeFuccio

Powell Was No Dummy Reportedly, Powell’s first professionally published work was this “Edgar Bergen & Charlie McCarthy” story (part of a movie adaptation) from Jumbo Comics #2 (Oct. 1938). By coincidence, though this issue hit the newsstands a month or so before that cover date, October 30, 1938, is the night on which Orson Welles’ infamous War of the Worlds radio broadcast panicked much of America—when people listening to the far more popular Bergen & McCarthy program changed stations during a commercial, and suddenly found themselves bombarded by “eyewitness” reports of an invasion from Mars! Thanks to Bruce Mason for the scan. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

The second part discusses the voluminous amount of artwork he produced, which I have compiled into an Index of his work (see end of article for how to obtain a copy). The Bob Powell Index data listed represents probably 95% of the artist’s work through 1960.

Who Was Bob Powell? Stanley Robert Pawlowski, who legally changed his name to S. Robert Powell in 1943, was born October 6, 1916, in Buffalo, New York, and died on October 1, 1967, in Huntington, New York, at the age of 51. Powell’s earliest comic book work was done in 1938 when he worked in the Eisner-Iger shop, which supplied comics to Fiction House, Fox, and Quality, among other publishers. From the very beginning his work had a distinctive style which can be instantly recognized today as one peruses comic books of that era. The major difference seen between his early-1940s style and his late-1940s style is due to the fact that he switched from pen to brush inking, though his stylistic flair remained the same.

Few interviews were ever done with Powell, and those that exist give only a slight insight into the man himself. One such is the following letter from Powell in response to queries sent by mail in 1966 by Mad magazine associate editor Jerry DeFuccio, a lifelong historian of the Golden Age of Comics. From the tone of his responses, Powell was obviously still put out by the commercial art establishment, which had nothing but disdain for mere comic book artists. This piece saw print in Alter Ego, Vol. 3, #10 (2001), but is repeated here. In it, Powell recounts: You caught me unawares with your letter and I must say that this resurgence in comic book sales and the avidness of the fans is somewhat ridiculous, albeit nicely rewarding. For years we were bums and most of us had to learn to redraw in order to make a living, and now all of a sudden we are little tin gods. I’m afraid I’m not impressed, but because of our long friendship I’ll try to run off some of my checkered career. However, at best, my memory isn’t very good, and ye gods, after reading your letter and some of the things you mention, you should be telling me! In 1938 I started with Eisner and Iger. With them I did various and sundries, the most known of course was “Sheena.” God, we must have had over a hundred characters before Chuck Mazoujian and I split off with Bill Eisner to do Spirit, [Mr.] Mystic, and Lady Luck. Busy Arnold, bless his little old thieving heart, gave me the opportunity to break off from old pinchpenny and go on my own. I’ve been freelance ever since. That was what? 1940-1? Harvey came into the picture then and when MM [Mr. Mystic] folded I did all the ones you mentioned, along with “Tommy Tween” and “Chickie Ricks.” “Man in Black” was my favorite, of course, and my baby exclusively (though Harvey owns, natch). I understand it’s coming out again, but because of an agreement I made with Stan Lee, I’ve refused to take it over again. Along came marriage, a son, and the war. I was hot to be a flyer, so before I got too goddam ancient (I was 26), I enlisted and was sworn in three days after my son’s first birthday. (Incidentally, he is an ensign in the regular Navy as a career officer and is about to get his wings as a jet pilot. He’s married and has presented me with the

The Peerless Power Of Bob Powell

greatest grandson ever conceived. What a heart stealer.) But to get back to the business at hand: I made the flight program and while in the second stage of training was sent to Milwaukee State Teachers (now part of the U. of Wisconsin) and while there was asked to do a strip for the weekly school paper. It gave me excellent training for satire and humor writing as I was given free rein to lampoon training and the officers and I had a ball. The strip was titled Kent Doodid and was sort of a Private Hargrove in pics. [A/E EDITOR’S NOTE: See Here, Private Hargrove by Marion Hargrove was a bestselling humor account of life in an Army camp during World War II.] Then my advanced training began and I did nothing until after I earned my wings and my commission. They immediately made me an instructor, which kept me out of the shooting, but even to this day I remember that I deserved the “Battle of Texas” medal…with teardrop cluster. Mustered out (on my birthday), I was still in my uniform when the Harveys put me right back to work. I had had an assistant before the war and now with things booming after, I took on several more. Street and Smith came along, together with Magazine Management and a couple of others, tho’ I can’t remember who, and my staff grew to six. I did the writing, penciling, and faces. Howard Nostrand and Marty Epp did the inking. Marty also did the lettering, George Siefringer, the old souse, did backgrounds. Other casuals did cleanup, errands, and created ulcers. Came TV and everything folded. But to regress: Shadow, Doc Savage, Nick Carter, and Dr. F. [Dr. Fung] were all done under Street and Smith. Then they folded. And boom! Dead. Kaput. Bum. And, oh, do I remember the years of struggle when art directors would say “Ah, yes. Very nice, Mr. Powell, but you were a comic book artist, weren’t you?”’ Finally I was able to break the style of drawing and started to make a decent living and again a damned good one and now what? Everyone’s knocking down the door and begging us to do comics again. I can’t get quite as enthused. Yes, I do some. I like the money. But I’d rather do illustrating, book and mag and the cartoons that your good offices acquired for me at Topps. Jerry, I don’t know if this will be of any help. I swear, you know more about my career than I do. As for getting originals or silver prints, I can’t help. Incidentally, we forgot to mention Vin Sullivan and Magazine Enterprises. I did a lot of work for them. Bobby Benson and the B-BarB Riders [sic], Red Hawk, etc. HEY! I also did a year’s syndicated strip of Bat Masterson. I hated it. I enclose several things for your amusement. They’re all pretty valuable to me and I’d appreciate their return. And most especially the two pictures. One shows me the day I got back to NY after the army with Leon Harvey, Buddy [Ernie] Schroeder, his wife, and an old school friend, Nancy Nelson. The other shows my chief gremlins. From top, counter-clockwise: Epp, Siefringer, and Nostrand. I’m remarried and have a son Kyle besides R.R., the ensign, my second son John, an art student at Syracuse U. I’m fat, getting old, drive a Stingray, we’re restoring a ’35 Hubert Johnson cabin cruiser with our own little hands, and why the hell don’t you come out and split a booze? Thanks for all the compliments and the very best on your book. Please send me a copy. But why the hell you want me in it, I don’t know. As ever,

Red Hawk Is Red Hot “Red Hawk,” a feature about a young Native American, graduated from Magazine Enterprises’ Western titles into a special issue of his own mag in 1953. This page from Red Hawk “#11” is reproduced from a photocopy of the original art; courtesy of Ed Lane. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

As a closing sidebar, it has been said that Powell was a tremendously fast worker and that he often worked all night. Reputedly, under these circumstances, he sometimes worked barefoot with a pail of ice water next to him. When he started to fall asleep, he stuck his foot into the pail to snap himself back to consciousness.

The Joe Simon Interview The following is an interview with Joe Simon recorded by Ethan Roberts on January 16, 1983, with additional comments by Cat Yronwode. In this interview Simon answered questions from a list that had previously been submitted to Cat, and some of his comments refer to her answers to the same questions. [A/E EDITOR’S NOTE: Our thanks to Ethan Robert and Cat Yronwode for permission to utilize this interview, and to Joe Simon for his blessing.] SIMON: Our studio in Tudor City was in the next building from Eisner’s studio, and I didn’t even know Powell was there. We were there for several years doing all the DC stuff during World War II, for example “Sandman,” “Boy Commandos,” and “Newsboy Legion.” We were really pushing out the stuff. [Simon refers to the list of questions.] Q: When did Powell work for Eisner’s shop? Had he done any comic book work previously? What were his special talents?

One Of The Most Skilled And Prolific Of Golden Age Artists

BOB POWELL Checklist [This Checklist is adapted from information appearing in the online Who’s Who of American Comic Books 1928-1999, established by Jerry G. Bails. See p. 32 for information on how to access this invaluable website. Names of features which appeared both in comic books of that particular title and also in other comics are generally not italicized. Reprinted material is only sporadically listed—more this time than ordinarily, however, because of the voluminous Harvey romance reprints mentioned in Ed Lane’s article, which reflect instructive changes dictated beginning in 1955 by the Comics Code Authority. Some data below has been added by Bob Powell and his son Seth R. Powell, by Ed Lane and Peter Hansen—and the detailed issue-by-issue listings below in some areas are adapted from a voluminous checklist of their own sent by Alberto Becattini and Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. Key: (a) = full art; (p) = pencils only; (i) = inks only; (w) = writer; (d) = daily newspaper strip; (S) = Sunday newspaper strip; (rep) reprint] Name: Stanley Robert Powell (born Stanley Robert Pawlowski) (1916-1967) (artist; writer)

Magazine Annual (Pyramid) early 1960s; Man’s World (Atlas) early 1960s; Rage (Natlus) 1961-64; South Sea Stories (Counterpoint) 1961-64; Sportsman (Atlas) early 1960s

Pen Names: Gregory Torey (house name at Brookwood/Harvey 1939-40); Terrence Macauley (house name at Quality, 1940-41); Powell Roberts; S.T. Anley; Major Ralston; Henry Ralston (?); S.R. Powell; Arthur Dean; Buck Stanley; Bob Stanley; Bud Ernest, Rex Smith; W. Morgan Thomas

Commercial Art & Design: displays for convention exhibits 1960s Other Career Notes: teacher: Pratt Institute

Education: Pratt Institute; Milwaukee State Teachers College (now part of University of Wisconsin) Member: Long Island Old Car Club (president) Books (as artist): Adolph Pupp’s Basketball Guide 1967; Picture World Encyclopedia 1959; Art Linkletter’s Children’s Encyclopedia 1961; Harwyn Picture Encyclopedia 1958; Yogi Berra’s Baseball Guide 1966; Science Is in the Air: An Inspirational Textbook Told Almost Exclusively in Pictures 1947 Trading Cards (all for Topps): penciler: “Mars Attacks” 1962, “Batman” 1966-67; penciler: trading cards “Civil War” 1962 (all painted by Norman Saunders) Magazine Illustrations: Action for Men (Atlas/Diamond) early 1960s; Action Life (Atlas) 1963-64; Adventure (New) early 1960s; Escape to Adventure (Escape) early 1960s; How Champions Play (Street & Smith) 1948; Man’s Daring (Candar) 1959-66; Man’s Magazine & Man’s

The Illustrating Man This moody illo by Powell was clearly done for a non-comics book or magazine—but which one, we’ve no way of knowing. Thanks to Seth Powell. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

Syndicated Comic Strips: Bat Masterson (S)(a) 1959-60 for Columbia Features (writer: Ed Herron); D-13 (S)(a)(w?) 1939-40 for Fox Features Syndicate (rep of comic book stories); Dr. Fung, Master Sleuth of the Orient (S)(a)(w) 1940 for Fox Features Syndicate (rep of comic book stories); Lady Luck (S)(w only) 1940-41 for Register & Tribune Syndicate; Mr. Mystic (S)(a)(w on most) 1940-43 for Register & Tribune Syndicate in The Spirit section; Secret Agent D-13 (rep of comic book stories) (w)(a) 1939-40; The Spirit (S) (assist. w) 1940, some (a); (assist. a)(assist. a)(some w) 1943-44, for Register & Tribune Syndicate; Teena a Go Go (S?)(a) 1966 (writer: Bessie

This Was Sandwiched In Between Blondie And Peanuts? The subject matter of this Teena a Go Go Sunday strip may seem a bit offbeat for your average newspaper—but hey, it was the ’60s! Thanks to Anthony Tollin. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

The Peerless Power Of Bob Powell

To Languish Unseen—Till Now A daily by Powell for an unsold Nick Carter newspaper comic strip, starring the famous detective hero of the early pulps. Thanks to Anthony Tollin & current owner J. Randolph Cox. [©2007 estate of Bob Powell.]

Little) Comics in Other Media: Mister Ken Doodid (w)(a) c. 1943 weekly at Milwaukee State; various features (w)(a) for men’s magazines

(a) 1950-54; True Confidences #4 (a) 1950; True Sweetheart Secrets #4, 5 (a) 1950; Vic Torry and His Flying Saucer [no #] (a) 1950; Worlds Beyond #1 (a) 1951; Worlds of Fear V1#2, 4, 5 (a) 1952-53?; Young Marriage #1 (a) 1950

Promotional Comics: Buster Brown Comics #9 (giveaway)(a) 1945; Major Inapak, the Space Ace (a) 1951 premium for Magazine Enterprises Trading Cards: Topps – Batman cards (p), painted by Norman Saunders Comics Studio/Shop: Eisner and Iger Studio (art dir) 1938-39; Eisner Studio (w)(a) 1940; Powell Studio (head)(w)(a) late 1940s to early 1950s COMIC BOOK CREDITS (Mainstream US Producers): Archie Comic Publications: The Adventures of The Fly #3, 4 (i) 1959-60; Blue Ribbon Comics (reprint of Fly)(a) 1984; The Shield (i) 1960 Charlton Comics: cars (a) 1954, 1957; Clint Curtis (a) 1954, 1957; covers (plot, p) 1955; jungle (a) 1956; Nature Boy #4 (Pecos Bill)(w)(a) 1956; Soldier and Marine (a) 1954; The Thing! #17 (a) 1954; This Magazine Is Haunted #3-5, 11, 12, 17 (a) 1957-58; Western (a) 1955 Cross Publications: crime (a) 1950, 1954 (?); The Perfect Crime #1, 2, 4 (1949-50) DC Comics: Strange Adventures #4 (a) 1951 Dell Publications: covers (a) 1950s; Henry (p) 1961 Fawcett Comics: Battle Stories #2 (a) 1952; Beware! Terror Tales #1, 2, 8 (a) 1952-53; Cowboy Love #10, 11 (a) 1959-51, reprinted by Charlton 1955; Down with Crime #2, 4 (a) 1952; Exciting Romances #8-10 (a) 1952-53; Fawcett Movie Comics #7-8 (w/Rocky Lane, Lash LaRue, Monte Hale (a) 1950; Hot Rod Comics #1-7 (covers & stories)(a) 1952-53; Lash LaRue (a) no date; Life Story #13, 23, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, 39 (a) 1950-53; Love Mystery #3 (a) 1950; Motion Picture Comics #104, 105 (Rocky Lane, The Red Badge of Courage); On the Spot [no #] [#1](a) 1948; Red Badge of Courage (a) 1951; Romantic Secrets #5, 7, 12, 16, 17, 20, 26, 29, 33, 34, 36, 37 (a) 1950-53; Romantic Story #7, 8, 16, 20, 30 (a) 1950-53 (some reprinted by Charlton 1955); Romantic Western (a) 1949; Strange Suspense Stories #1, 4 (a) 1952; Sweethearts Diary [# uncertain] (a) 1950; Sweethearts #90, 101, 106, 107, 113, 117, V2#26

Clearly It’s Not “Take An Indian To Lunch” Week These four drawings of Western ritual torture by Powell (preserved in rare pencil form!) look as if they, too, were destined for trading cards—what used to be called “bubble gum cards,” in the days when the companies still put gum in the packets. Courtesy of Seth Powell. Our apologies to the great Stan Freberg for our caption heading. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

The Flyin’ Fool Cover Art How A Long-Neglected Powell Illustration Was Restored—And Finally Published! by Roger Hill

’ve been doing my own art restoration for over twenty years now and find it to be most rewarding. It can also be very frustrating and time-consuming, but is always worth the effort in the long run. It’s a proud accomplishment when you can take a dirty, scuffed-up, stained page of old original comic art and return it to a state very near its original condition. Every piece of art is different, of course, and has its own unique problems, which must be solved during the restoration process. Since I collect many older comic covers from the 1940s and 1950s, I’m almost always faced with replacing the title logos and other, smaller cover stats or blurbs that have fallen off over the years. This is also true with interior pages that have lost a pasteover word balloon or lettering of some kind. These things are minor obstacles and can usually be overcome quickly by locating a copy of the comic, and using that image to work from. Once you’ve scanned or re-photographed the logo off the comic, it’s just a matter of blowing it up to the correct proportion in size to the original art, then cleaning it up and eliminating the color residue to convert it back to a black-&-white image. This clean-up process can be done by various methods; one of the most accepted these days is using a computer with Photoshop capabilities. If you have the patience and skills to use the process, you can produce a title logo that looks just as good as the original. The logos are usually the easiest thing to deal with. The other things like paper-loss, rubber cement, coffee stains, tears, dirt, grime, warping, etc. are another matter, indeed. By at least replacing a title logo when it’s missing, I feel it’s a worthwhile contribution to the overall look and survivability of any comic cover. If you don’t replace the logo, then you have to live with a bad glue stain, which can be very distracting from the overall beauty of the piece. I have collected Bob Powell original artwork and his published work in pulps, comic books, magazines, and wherever else I could find it, for over thirty years. I consider him one of the greatest and most prolific comic artists ever to have worked in the genre. He had a unique style, unlike anyone else I can think of. His work may not demonstrate the power and forcefulness of Jack Kirby, or a fine line delineation of Lou Fine or Frank Frazetta, but two things he was capable of: he could draw anything required of him and make it look easy, and he could visually tell a story ten times better than many of his peers. Because of his heavy output during the early to mid-1940s, I’ve always thought of him as one of the fastest artists in the business and certainly one of the most easily identified styles in comics. It was during the 1987 Chicago Comic Con that I first saw an original piece of cover art by Powell that I didn’t recognize. I knew it had to be a piece of Harvey Comics art because, at the time, a lot of 1940s art had been turning up out of the Harvey warehouse deal. The Harvey warehouse inventory of artwork was originally purchased by Steve Geppi and Harry Metetsky and was beginning to make its way into the hands of collectors all over the country through different dealers. I was a bit disgusted when I first saw this original, because the entire upper third of the piece was only a huge rubber cement stain where the title logo had been. As much as the art itself appealed to me, I was not familiar with the characters portrayed in the image. So I knew right away that tracking down the comic was going to be a little

First Glimpse Of A Flyin’ Fool Roger Hill writes: “This is the cover as it looked when I first saw it, with bad glue stain at upper logo area. Note [the] ‘P’ in lower right-hand corner—odd way for Powell to sign something, but then, Harvey didn’t allow some artists to sign their work.” All art accompanying this article was provided by Roger, except where otherwise stated. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

more difficult than usual. Another problem was the white-out on the piece. Powell was known to be a heavy user of white-out paint to more or less smooth out rough edges, or to make last-minute changes, before he turned a piece of art in to the publisher. The white-out on this cover was flaking off rather badly, too. But that’s never been a problem for me to replace. A steady hand and a number 2 sable brush will do it every time. Fortunately, when white-out flakes off a page of art where it’s been for over forty years, it leaves a track you can follow in order to lay it right back down again. This cover also didn’t sport the usual “Powell” signature seen on a lot of his work, but instead just a “P” placed in the lower right corner, also applied with white-out. It was also beginning to flake-off. The art

The Flyin’ Fool Cover Art

Victory Adventures #2, dated August 1943, drawn by Powell. This was followed by his second appearance in #3; then he wasn’t seen again until All-New Comics #7 (March 1944). After brief appearances in All-New #13 (July-Aug. 1946) and a 2-page text story in #14 (Jan.-Feb. 1947), he finally wound up being serialized by Powell in Joe Palooka #7 -#25 (except for #15, which had his “Atoma” one-shot story instead).

The Flyin’ Fool’s Test Flight A half-page Harvey house ad from Speed Comics #43 (May-June 1946). Note the Flyin’ Fool cover next to one for Black Cat Comics at right. Harvey had quite a lineup in those days, including Stuntman and Boy Explorers and occasional other features by the Simon & Kirby team! [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

Along with his letter, Ed also sent me a Xerox copy of the story from Joe Palooka #8 (Feb. 1947). The interesting thing about this particular story is that the scene depicted on my cover actually appears in this story. In the story, Chickie Ricks actually gets nicknamed “The Flyin’ Fool” because he maneuvers his plane—an Australian-built Bristol 152 Beaufort—close enough to strike and kill “Tatar,” yet not injure “Maylene.” It’s also very apparent in this story that Chickie Ricks has just met up with his old Marine buddy “Gootch.” During the final panels of the story, they decide to gang up with “Maylene,” who has become Chickie’s newfound girlfriend. So, this appears to be an introductory story for leading off the “Flyin’ Fool” series, and the Flyin’ Fool comic book. Not having seen the stories that preceded this one, I can’t be positive about it. But that was my theory.

was what I would call a basket case, but I couldn’t pass it up. Even with all the problems it had, I couldn’t walk away from it. I considered it a real challenge and knew that, if I walked away from it, it might never get restored. So I paid the dealer’s price and took it home. Naturally, the first thing I did with the cover when I got home from the convention was to throw it in a drawer and forget about it for six months. But eventually I dug it out and began researching the piece, which led me to pull out a copy of Ed Lane’s Bob Powell Index. Ed Lane, for those who might not know, is probably the world’s foremost authority on Powell’s work in comics, magazines, gum-cards, and everything else. Looking through his invaluable index and checklist, I spotted several war or aviation comic titles on which this cover could have been used. Because the art was signed with a “P,” I suspected Powell had drawn it sometime in the mid-1940s. I say that because most everything I’d seen by him from about 1947 on was boldly signed with his full last name. Since this was in the days before Ernie Gerber came out with his Photo-Journal Guide to Comic Books, I wasn’t having much luck finding this cover on a comic. After going through everything in my collection, I decided to send a letter off to Ed Lane, along with a Xerox of the cover art. Shortly afterward, his response arrived back in the mail and informed me that the unidentified art was the cover of an unpublished Harvey comic called Flyin’ Fool Comics. As Ed explained in his letter, this cover was first advertised by Harvey in several house ads. He even sent me a Xerox copy of the house ad from Joe Palooka #6 (Oct.-Nov. 1946) and told me the ad had run in issues #6 through #9, and in various issues of Green Hornet. Later, while digging through my own collection, I found an earlier-dated house ad for that issue in Green Hornet #30 (May-June 1946). This helped me with my bestguess of when Powell might have drawn the cover. I eventually concluded it was between late 1945 and early 1946. Ed identified the characters on the cover, whose names I had not heard before. They consist of the pilot Chickie Ricks, his bumbling sidekick Gootch, and Maylene, a beautiful outlaw who lived in an Oriental country near Tibet. The Cossack-looking villain on the horse, with his rope around Maylene, is “Tatar the Terrible.” Further research revealed that the “Flyin’ Fool” had first debuted in Harvey’s War

Grounded! The first page of the “Flyin’ Fool” story from Joe Palooka Comics #8 (Feb. 1947). This story was doubtless originally intended to be printed in Flyin’ Fool #1. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

THE POWELL FAMILY ALBUM!

by Michael T. Gilbert et’s begin with this tongue-in-cheek Bob Powell biography—by Bob himself! This originally appeared in Sick #42 (Feb. 1966).

Who Was Who In 1945 Ed Lane has ID’d most of the following Golden Age heroes in the 1945 drawing on the facing page: Maylene (a “Dragon Lady” type in early “Chickie Ricks” stories)… an unknown masked swashbuckler (anybody recognize him?)… The Scarlet Arrow (from early Black Cat)… probably Banks Barrow (aviator in bkgd., USMC pilot from “Loops ’n’ Banks” in early Military Comics)… diminutive professor who hosted an educational series on “The Human Body” in Treasure Chest… Susan (sometime love interest) & The Spirit of ’76 from Green Hornet… The Man in Black… Sheena (’nuff said!)… Powell’s infant son John (see p. 50 for details) Abdul the Arab from early Smash Comics… Black Cat… Chowderhead (red-headed comic relief) & Mr. Mystic, both from the latter feature. [Characters TM & ©2007 the respective trademark & copyright holders.]

“Make Mine Magazine Management!” The Good Ol’ Days At MARTIN GOODMAN’s Colorful Magazine Empire by David George

A/E

EDITOR’S INTRO: On the day in early July 1965 that I went to work for Stan Lee at Marvel, I had never heard the very phrase “Magazine Management.” Probably few people had, if they didn’t either work for that organization or have some sales connection with it. But, by the 1950s, that had become the overall name for the publishing company owned by Martin Goodman, which included the Timely (and later Marvel) comic books, but, far more importantly to him, a sizable group of men’s adventure, confession, crime, movie, cartoon, “girlie”-photo, and even crossword puzzle magazines whose cover prices (and thus potential profits) dwarfed those of “funnybooks,” even by the mid1960s when Lee, Kirby, and Ditko had revitalized the line. Sometime in the first year or so I worked for Stan, I recall being told (by whom, I don’t recall) that the comics represented at most one-third of Magazine Management’s value. Who’d have guessed then that, less than a decade later, Marvel Comics would bestride the comic book world like a four-color colossus… while most

Isn’t Anyplace In New York City Safe? David George (above)—and (at right) an early-1950s pic of Martin Goodman, founding publisher of Timely/Marvel and its umbrella company Magazine Management. Some felt that, with his silver hair, Goodman strongly resembled actor William Boyd, a.k.a. Hopalong Cassidy. The recent photo of David was taken by Bill Aguilera; that of MG was supplied from Male [magazine], Vol. 3, #10 (Oct. 1953), by Stan Taylor. Juxtaposed are two MM covers with May 1967 dates: For Men Only, Vol. 14, #5… and The Amazing Spider-Man #48. The former is by Mort Künstler, who went on to achieve fame as a painter… while the latter, drawn by rising comics star John Romita, introduced a new and younger Vulture to torment Marvel’s most popular hero. [For Men Only cover ©2007 the respective copyright holders; comic art ©2007 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

“Make Mine Magazine Management!”

of those “real” magazines were in the process of disappearing forever from the face of the Earth? Even so, the non-comics part of Magazine Management—a sizable dog which was not yet being wagged by its four-color tail—has a rich history of its own, one that both intersects with Marvel’s and is, in its own way, just as fascinating. Some time back, through Gary Friedrich (who worked for both the comics and magazine branches of “MM” at one time or another), I re-established contact with a talented and amiable MM editor I’d known slightly during my time at Marvel: David George. David agreed to scribe some memories of his Magazine Management days for us, and sent some mags and photos to illustrate his reminiscences. I haven’t been able to resist adding a bit of personal commentary to the accompanying pics and artwork… and David and I hope the combination will add appreciably to the picture of pioneer comic book publisher Martin Goodman and his color-splashed kingdom. —Roy.

Welcome To Martin Goodman’s World It was a warm, humid day in June when I climbed the subway steps and made my way west up 59th Street. The year was 1964 and I was headed for 625 Madison Avenue and the offices of Magazine Management. It had been an eventful year, or as author Jon Margolis, former political reporter for the Chicago Tribune, referred to it in his book, The Last Innocent Year, “the beginning of the ’sixties.” It was the year the Civil Rights Act became law. Cassius Clay beat Sonny Liston. China tested her first atomic bomb. The US Surgeon General warned against cigarette smoking. Nelson Mandela began serving a life sentence for opposing Apartheid. Honda diversified into car production. A World’s Fair opened in New York’s Flushing Meadows. Chemotherapy was first used in the treatment of cancer. The Berlin Wall went up. Liz Taylor married Richard Burton. Timothy Leary set out on his psychedelic journey. And the Beatles arrived in America. While young men started burning their draft cards, rioting black men set fire to neighborhoods, and women began to wonder if the male sex was their oppressor, I hurried up 59th Street to keep my own date with destiny. As I neared the corner of 59th and Madison, a pigeon indiscriminately deposited its finest droppings on the sleeve of my new, olive-green lightweight summer suit. “It’s good luck,” Noah Sarlat responded as I sat in his office a few minutes later, chuckling good-naturedly while I rubbed furiously at the black-and-white splotch with a wet paper towel. Noah was one of two editorial directors at Magazine Management. I had interviewed with him following a cold call I’d made on the advice of my friends Bob Shea, who had been an associate editor with me at

Sarlat, Stag, Sin, And Soldiers

Fawcett’s True magazine, and Larry Shaw, an editor at Lancer Books.

(Left:) This 1951 paperback, issued by Goodman’s Lion imprint, announced inside that its text was “taken from full-length articles that originally appeared in Male, Stag, and Eye magazines. Not one word has been censored from the magazine pieces that startled Americans from their lethargy in the face of syndicated crime.” Noah Sarlat is credited within as “editor of Male and Stag”; he was also editor of the paperback line. The “71” beneath his cover byline represents a sequential numbering device (similar to that of the comics) to help distributors and retailers track new releases and newsstand returns… while Eye was originally one of MM’s cheap photo mags loaded with “girlie” shots. The Lion paperback line was discontinued in 1956, when Goodman dissolved Atlas Distributing so the rest of his output, including the comic books, could be handled by American News Company—only to see ANC close down its national periodical distribution division six months later, nearly spelling an end to Goodman’s empire. Thanks to Michael Feldman for much of the above info. [©2007 the respective copyright holders.]

“I don’t have anything at the moment,” (Right:) In the early 1960s, editor Sarlet presented Mort Noah had Künstler’s original cover painting for the Dec. 1961 issue advised me of Stag to Gen. Curtis LeMay in the latter’s Pentagon over the office. The accompanying story had been titled: “The phone, “but I American General Russia Fears Most—Air Force Chief of suspect there Staff Curtis LeMay.” [Photo ©2007 the respective might be an copyright holders.] opening any day now.” And sure enough, a few weeks later, following the resignation of a young associate editor, Noah called me in for an interview and promptly hired me.

The men’s magazine department was split up into two divisions, with the associate editors divided into two separate “bullpens” of six each, plus one secretary. Noah headed up my group, which consisted of Stag, For Men Only, Complete Man, Action for Men, and Sportsman. The other group was presided over by Bruce Jay Friedman and included Male, Men, Man’s World, and True Action. There were other titles published from time to time, including so-called “annuals” twice a year. These annuals consisted primarily of reprints from the major titles, Male, Men, Stag, and For Men Only. They were simply repackaged with new titles, different photos and/or art. Blurbs and captions were also rewritten to give the issues a “fresh” look. Action for Men, True Action, Man’s World, and Sportsman also ran a lot of recycled material, although some original articles were included. Noah put me right to work that day, writing blurbs and captions for a four-page Stag spread that featured at least two dozen World War II photos, each demanding a two-line caption. But first he introduced me to Vera Jirsa, managing editor of Stag at the time.

Alter Ego #66