house ad from Fantastic! #45 (IPC UK, 23 December 1967)
Saturday, October 14, 2023
Today in Comics History, October 14: Happy birthday, Roger Moore!
Born on this day in 1927: cinema's only James Bond, Sir Roger Moore (picture, below, hanging out with his good pal Ben Grimm).
house ad from Fantastic! #45 (IPC UK, 23 December 1967)
house ad from Fantastic! #45 (IPC UK, 23 December 1967)
Today in Comics History, October 14, 1938: That sure was a shocking story, wasn't it, kids?
from "Killer!" in Police Line-Up #1 (Avon, August 1951), inks by George Roussos (?)
Today in Comics History, October 14, 1806: French military defies expectations of American dumbasses
from "General Antoine Henri Jomini" in It Really Happened #3 (Pines, 1944), creators uncredited and unknown
Today in Comics History, Eclipse Day: If you look up at the sun today, you're sure of a big surprise
Oh no! Today's the day that the rare "Ring of Fire" Eclipse (so named by Johnny Cash in song) sweeps across the nation, darkening the skies, hiding the sun and sending werewolves into confusion!
from "The Hidden World!" in Sub-Mariner (1954 series) #36 (Marvel/Atlas, November 1954); script, pencils, inks, and letters by Bill Everett
from "The Hidden World!" in Sub-Mariner (1954 series) #36 (Marvel/Atlas, November 1954); script, pencils, inks, and letters by Bill Everett
Today in Comics History, October 14: Happy birthday, Bob Oksner!
Born on this day in 1916: Bob Oksner, comic book scripter, penciller, and inker on hundreds of books like The Adventures of Jerry Lewis, Leave It to Binky, Marvel Mystery Comics, Action Comics, Superman, The Adventures of Bob Hope, The Adventures of Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis, Sergeant Bilko, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, The Daring New Adventures of Supergirl and many, many more!
from DC Comics cover-dated November 1962
Award-winning artist? You betcha!
from DC house ad from DC Comics cover-dated November 1971, letters by Gaspar Saladino
Olypmics judge Bob Oksner awards Superman a 9.7 on his dive, and the judges agree...hey, what's the big deal, Julie Schwartz?!?
from DC Comics Presents #81 (DC, May 1985), plot and pencils by Keith Giffen, dialogue by Robert Loren Fleming, inks by Bob Oksner, colors by Anthony Tollin, letters by Bill Pearson
Happy birthday, Bob!
from DC Comics cover-dated November 1962
Award-winning artist? You betcha!
from DC house ad from DC Comics cover-dated November 1971, letters by Gaspar Saladino
Olypmics judge Bob Oksner awards Superman a 9.7 on his dive, and the judges agree...hey, what's the big deal, Julie Schwartz?!?
from DC Comics Presents #81 (DC, May 1985), plot and pencils by Keith Giffen, dialogue by Robert Loren Fleming, inks by Bob Oksner, colors by Anthony Tollin, letters by Bill Pearson
Happy birthday, Bob!
Today in Comics History, October 14, 1963: Or, as Billy Joel calls it, British Beatlemania
from The Beatles in Comics! (NBM, November 2018); script by Richard Di Martino; translation by Joe Johnson; pencils, inks, and colors by Efix; letters by Ortho
Friday, October 13, 2023
Today in Comics History, October 13, 1937: Even cartoon funny animals agree every workplace should have a union
from Comic Book Comics #1 (Evil Twin, November 2016); script by Fred Van Lente; pencils, inks, and letters by Ryan Dunlavey
Today in Comics History, October 13, 1487: Batman misses the days when Ra's would just write in his diary about how he got bullied by the other boys at recess and how much he worshipped Taylor Swift
from Batman: The Audio Adventures (2022 series) #6 (DC, July 2023), script by Dennis McNicholas, pencils by Anthony Marques and J. Bone, inks by J. Bone, colors by Dave Stewart, letters by Ferran Delgado
Today in Comics History, October 13, 1967: But in 1967, October 13 was a Friday, Stan. So where's my No-Prize?!
cover of Amazing Spider-Man (1963 series) #56 (Marvel, January 1968), pencils and inks by John Romita, Sr., letters by Sam Rosen
Today in Comics History, October 13: Happy birthday, Cadet Schitt!
from Justice Warriors #5 (AHOY!, October 2022), co-script and letters by Matt Bors, co-script and art by Ben Clarkson, colors by Felipe Sobeiro
Happy birthday, Mister Sc...uh, happy birthday to you.
Today in Comics History, October 13, 1939: A shocked and stunned nation in 1939 cannot comprehend the startling revelation that the Daily Bugle can print its first page in color!?! For free?!?
This is an expanded and updated version of a post originally published October 13, 2022.
from The Daily Bugle: The Marvels Project tie-in promo (Marvel, 2009), art by Alex Ross
from The Daily Bugle: The Marvels Project tie-in promo (Marvel, 2009), art by Alex Ross
Today in Comics History, Friday the 13th: What's the worst that can happen
Happy Friday the Thirteenth! Hope you're not having as bad luck as Superman is!
cover of Action Comics #721 (DC, May 1996), pencils by Kieron Dwyer, inks by Denis Rodier, colors by Patrick Martin
(Click picture for the how-bad-can-it-be reveal)
But how bad can it be for Superman? For the answer to that question, click the image above.
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
(Click picture for the how-bad-can-it-be reveal)
But how bad can it be for Superman? For the answer to that question, click the image above.
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
Today in Comics History, Friday the 13th: The day Lois killed a dog
This is an expanded and updated version of a post originally published November 28, 2012.
It's Friday the Thirteenth! Which really is only a bummer if you're superstitious. Modern, educated people — like, say, journalists for a Great Metropolitan newspaper — don't believe in superstition! Why, in theclickbait pageturningbait of Pre-Crisis The Daily Planet, Perry "Non-Chief" White doesn't have a superstitious bone in his body! He also doesn't have a soup bone in his body, and that's only the first disappointment in this story for dogs.
from "Lois Lane's Kiss of Death!" in Lois Lane #7 (February 1959), script by Robert Bernstein, pencils and inks by Kurt Schaffenberger
In any other universe (except perhaps Peter Parker's) this editorial edict would lead a dull and mundane tale of Lois reporting on something light and frothy that will get printed, if she's lucky, on the "Life In These Here United States" page. But not in a Pre-Crisis Superman tale! Yep, it all adds up to this...
...and the death of a dog.
It's Friday the Thirteenth! Which really is only a bummer if you're superstitious. Modern, educated people — like, say, journalists for a Great Metropolitan newspaper — don't believe in superstition! Why, in the
from "Lois Lane's Kiss of Death!" in Lois Lane #7 (February 1959), script by Robert Bernstein, pencils and inks by Kurt Schaffenberger
In any other universe (except perhaps Peter Parker's) this editorial edict would lead a dull and mundane tale of Lois reporting on something light and frothy that will get printed, if she's lucky, on the "Life In These Here United States" page. But not in a Pre-Crisis Superman tale! Yep, it all adds up to this...
...and the death of a dog.
Today in Comics History, Friday the 13: Phil Fumble dies of hypothermia; Nancy suspiciously takes over the comic
This is an expanded and updated version of a post originally published Friday, October 13, 2013.
cover of Tip Topper #21 (United Feature, February 1953), pencils and inks by Ernie Bushmiller (?)
cover of Tip Topper #21 (United Feature, February 1953), pencils and inks by Ernie Bushmiller (?)
Thursday, October 12, 2023
Today in Comics History, October 12: Happy birthday, J. Torres!
Born on this day: comic book and television writer J. Torres (Teen Titans Go!, Alison Dare (co-creator), Black Panther, X-Men: Ronin, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Avatar: The Last Airbender, the Rugrats comic strip, and much more)! here he is the the top panel (penciller Todd Nauck is in the lower one):
from "When Chibis Attack" Teen Titans Go (2004 series) #18 (DC, June 2005), script by J. Torres, pencils by Todd Nauck, inks by Lary Stucker, colors by Heroic Age, letters by Nick Napolitano
Happy birthday, J! Can I call you that? You can call me B. Just don't call me late for dinner BWAH-HA-HA-HA!
from "When Chibis Attack" Teen Titans Go (2004 series) #18 (DC, June 2005), script by J. Torres, pencils by Todd Nauck, inks by Lary Stucker, colors by Heroic Age, letters by Nick Napolitano
Happy birthday, J! Can I call you that? You can call me B. Just don't call me late for dinner BWAH-HA-HA-HA!
Today in Comics History, October 12: Happy birthday, Nuklon!
Born on this day: Al Rothstein, the nuclear-powered DC hero named Nuklon!
from Infinity Inc. (1984 series) #22 (DC, January 1986), script by Roy Thomas and Dann Thomas
Happy birthday, Nuklon! Don't get overexcited at your biothday party, 'kay, pal?
from Infinity Inc. (1984 series) #22 (DC, January 1986), script by Roy Thomas and Dann Thomas
Happy birthday, Nuklon! Don't get overexcited at your biothday party, 'kay, pal?
Today in Comics History, October 12: An eight-month-iversary isn't a thing, Barry
from The Flash (2016 series) #74 (DC, August 2019), script by Joshua Williamson, pencils and inks by Howard Porter, colors by Hi-Fi, letters by Steve Wands
Today in Comics History, October 12: Happy birthday, Doris Grau!
Born on this day in 1924: Doris Grau, actor, voice artist, and script supervisor. You may remember her from such roles and voices in Babe, Cheers, DuckTales, The Critic as Jay Sherman's make-up artist Doris Grossman and The Simpsons as Lunchlady Doris and other characters. Following Grau's death in 1995, the character was retired from the show, although recently a similarly diesned character named Lunchlady Dora has appeared, voiced by Tress MacNeille.
"The Bongo beat" from Bongo Comics cover-dated February 1996
Happy birthday, Doris! We miss you.
"The Bongo beat" from Bongo Comics cover-dated February 1996
Happy birthday, Doris! We miss you.
Today in Comics History, October 12: Happy birthday, Dan Abnett!
Born on this day: comics scripter, editor, and novelist Dan Abnett (Legion of Super-Heroes, 2000 AD, The Punisher, Guardians of the Galaxy, X-Men, Titans Hunt, War Machine, Annihilation: Nova, Warhammer 40,000, Planet of the Apes, and lots more!) He's the co-creator of (many of these with writing partner Andy Lanning) Elsa Bloodstone, Resurrection Man, Knights of Pendragon, Death's Head II, Cosmo the Space Dog, the 2008+ version of the Guardians of the Galaxy, Force Works, and others!
from Marvel Age Punisher Anniversary Magazine one-shot (Marvel, February 1994)
from Marvel Age Punisher Anniversary Magazine one-shot (Marvel, February 1994)
Today in Comics History, October 12, 1985: I could never vote in a phone poll to kill off someone who likes hot chocolate.
from "Dear Pen Pal..." in Blue Devil #19 (DC, December 1985), plot and pencils by Alan Kupperberg, script by Gary Cohn and Dan Mishkin, inks by Rick Magyar, colors by Michele Wolfman, letters by Bob Lappan
Today in Comics History, October 12: Happy birthday, Barbara Johnston!
Born on this day: Marvel Age designer Barbara Johnston!
from Marvel Age #58 (Marvel, January 1988), text by Mike Carlin, pencils and inks by Ron Zalme, colors by Paul Becton
from Marvel Age #58 (Marvel, January 1988), text by Mike Carlin, pencils and inks by Ron Zalme, colors by Paul Becton
Today in Comics History: Thursday the 12th: The Day Before Sluggo Died
Today in Comics History, October 12, 1969: Paul McCartney has been replaced by a Skrull
from The Beatles in Comics! (NBM, November 2018); script by Richard Di Martino; translation by Joe Johnson; pencils, inks, and colors by Patrick Lacan; letters by Ortho
OH NO THEY ALL HAVE
from Wisdom #2 (Marvel, February 2007), script by Paul Cornell, pencils by Trevor Hairsine, inks by Paul Neary, colors by Guru eFX, letters by Joe Caramagna
Today in Comics History, October 12: Iris West is really, really bad at bedroom talk
from The Flash (2016 series) #73 (DC, August 2019), script by Joshua Williamson, pencils and inks by Howard Porter, colors by Hi-Fi, letters by Steve Wands
Wednesday, October 11, 2023
Today in Comics History, October 11: Happy birthday, Dawn French!
Born on this day: actor, comedian, and writer Dawn French (French and Saunders, The Vicar of Dibley, The Comic Strip, The Young Ones, Girls on Top, Psychoville, Murder Most Horrid and more)!
Here, Dawn and fellow comic/writer Ben Elton raise money for Comic Relief...in a comic!
from "Comic Relief, Part 8" in The Comic Relief Comic (Fleetway, March 1991), pencils and inks by Steve Yeowell
And here she is in one of my very favorite scenes from The Young Ones.
from The Young Ones "Time," series 2 episode 4 (BBC, 5 June 1984); written by Ben Elton, Rik Mayall and Lise Mayer; directed by Paul Jackson
Happy birthday, Dawn!
from "Comic Relief, Part 8" in The Comic Relief Comic (Fleetway, March 1991), pencils and inks by Steve Yeowell
And here she is in one of my very favorite scenes from The Young Ones.
from The Young Ones "Time," series 2 episode 4 (BBC, 5 June 1984); written by Ben Elton, Rik Mayall and Lise Mayer; directed by Paul Jackson
Happy birthday, Dawn!
Today in Comics History, October 11, 1973: We're Bee-ing Invaded
from "The Mississippi Mystery" in UFO Flying Saucers #4 (Western/Gold Key, November 1974), pencils and inks by Frank Bolle
This post was suggested by faithful reader and frequent commenter Blam, who's provided a lot of date references in comics that I'll spotlight throughout 2023 in this series. Thanks, Blam!
Tuesday, October 10, 2023
Today in Comics History, October 10: Happy birthday, Nicholas Parsons!
Born on this day in 1923: English actor and radio and TV presenter Nicholas Parsons! He hosted one of my all-time favorite BBC programmes, Just a Minute, from 1967–2019 and never missed a single show until his final year.
contest ad "Final Part of Our Super Star Cast Competition" from 2000 AD & Star Lord #88 (IPC, 28 October 1978)
Was he in a comic book? Well, sort of!
He shoulda played Dan Dare, I guess!
Happy birthday, Nicholas!
contest ad "Final Part of Our Super Star Cast Competition" from 2000 AD & Star Lord #88 (IPC, 28 October 1978)
Was he in a comic book? Well, sort of!
He shoulda played Dan Dare, I guess!
Happy birthday, Nicholas!
Today in Comics History, October 10, 1996: All 1990s X-Men comics are wiped from existence
from What If...? (1989 series) -1 (Marvel, July 1997), script by Ben Raab, pencils by Ariel Olivetti, inks by Pier Brito, colors by Matt Webb, letters by Chris Eliopoulos
Today in Comics History, October 10, 1975: Black Lightning really wants to order Moons Over My Hammy but is too embarrassed of how silly it sounds
from The Other History of the DC Universe #1 (DC/Black Label, January 2021), script by John Ridley, layouts by Giuseppe Camuncoli, finishes by by Andrea Cucchi
Today in Comics History, October 10: Happy birthday, Giuseppe Verdi!
Born on this day (or maybe yesterday) in 1813: Giuseppe Verdi, composer and lyricist, best known for his famous operas Rigoletto, Il trovatore, Aida, Falstaff, Otello, and La traviata and many other works! Here's Batman and Robin singing one of them, so you know Verdi hit it big in comics!
from "The Grand Opera Murders!" in Batman (1940 series) #40 (DC/National, April 1947), script by Don C. Cameron (?), pencils by Dick Sprang, inks by Gene McDonald, letters by Joe Letterese (?)
from "The Grand Opera Murders!" in Batman (1940 series) #40 (DC/National, April 1947), script by Don C. Cameron (?), pencils by Dick Sprang, inks by Gene McDonald, letters by Joe Letterese (?)
Today in Comics History, October 10: Why is Green Lantern against crime patrols?
from Infinity Inc. (1984 series) #4 (DC, July 1984), co-plot and script by Roy Thomas, co-plot by Dann Thomas, pencils by Jerry Ordway, inks by Mike Machlan, colors by Adrienne Roy and Anthony Tollin, letters by David Cody Weiss
Today in Comics History, October 10: Happy birthday, Ed Wood!
Born on this day in 1924: filmmaker, actor, writer and cross-dresser Ed Wood Jr., maker of some of the finest bad movies (or worst good movies) in Hollywood (Glen or Glenda, Bride of the Monster, Plan 9 from Outer Space, Night of the Ghouls, and more)!
from "The Edward D. Wood, Jr. Players Trading Cards" in Any Similarity to Persons Living Or Dead Is Purely Coincidental (Fantagraphics, 1986), by Drew Friedman
Me, I like Ed Wood's films. They're passionate, goofy, and at least fun. And no matter what anybody tells you, they are not the worst films ever made.
from The Big Book of Weirdos (DC/Paradox, April 1995), script by Carl Posey, pencils and inks by Mitch O'Connell, letters by Rod Ollerenshaw
Happy birthday, Ed! I hope you're in Cashmere Heaven.
Fan-made video of the RiffTrax version of Plan 9 from Outer Space (Reynolds Pictures, Inc., 1957), edited to look like a Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode
from "The Edward D. Wood, Jr. Players Trading Cards" in Any Similarity to Persons Living Or Dead Is Purely Coincidental (Fantagraphics, 1986), by Drew Friedman
Me, I like Ed Wood's films. They're passionate, goofy, and at least fun. And no matter what anybody tells you, they are not the worst films ever made.
from The Big Book of Weirdos (DC/Paradox, April 1995), script by Carl Posey, pencils and inks by Mitch O'Connell, letters by Rod Ollerenshaw
Happy birthday, Ed! I hope you're in Cashmere Heaven.
Fan-made video of the RiffTrax version of Plan 9 from Outer Space (Reynolds Pictures, Inc., 1957), edited to look like a Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode
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