Today in Comics History, September 21: Happy birthday, Larry Hagman!

Born on this day in 1931: actor (and director and producer) Larry Hagman! You know him from a whole lotta film and TV shows, and especially from that time he had his house saved by Iron Man:


from Iron Man (1968 series) #222 (Marvel, September 1987), co-plot and script by David Michelinie, co-plot and finishes by Bob Layton, breakdowns by M. D. Bright, colors by Bob Sharen, letters by Janice Chiang
This scene was slightly adapted into 2013's Iron Man 3 movie, and the only reason it didn't co-star Larry Hagman was that Robert Downey felt Hagman would be too awesome for the film. And also, Hagman died in 2012.



Larry Hagman's many roles include ordinary working-class astronaut Major Tony Nelson alongside Barbara Eden in NBC's I Dream of Jeannie (1967-1970), which was picked up by Dell "We'll Adapt Anything" Comics for a short but entertaining run of two issues.



from "Suits Me" in I Dream of Jeannie #1 (Dell, April 1966), creators uncredited and unknown 9possibly Paul S. Newman and Mike Arens?)
Larry's perhaps best known to modern audiences as Texas oil baron and no-good-nik J.R. Ewing from the long-running prime-time soap Dallas, which was so popular it was spoofed not only by MAD Magazine and the usual Gang of Idiots...



from MAD #223 (June 1981), cover by Sam Viviano; "Dullus" script by Lou Silverstone, pencils and inks by Mort Drucker
...but also by the magazine you'd only buy when you couldn't find a copy of MAD on the newsstand, Cracked! Huh, it's an unusual day when you get a more accturate caricature of Larry Hagman on the cover of Crazy than on MAD. (Oh man, I do love Bob Larkin's painted covers!)



from Crazy Magazine #74 (May 1981), cover painting by Bob Larkin; "Dull As!" scipt by Murad Gümen, pencils and inks by Kent Gamble, letters by Carl Gafford
It's true: Dallas made Larry Hagman a household name and a figure recognized wherever he would go!


from "More Celebrity Silhouettes" in MAD #272 (July 1987), script by Rurik Tyler, art by Bob Clarke
Happy birthday, Larry Hagman!