Today in Comics History, April 8, 1944: Jim & Al

Jim & Al, folks.


from Invisible Ink: My Mother's Secret Love Affair with a Famous Cartoonist (Fantagraphics, September 2015), by Bill Griffith
Jim & Al. And that's all I gots to say about that.

Today in Comics History, April 8, 1897: And just like the guy whose feet are too big for his bed / Nothing seems to fit

from The Dreaming (1996 series) #41 (DC/Vertigo, October 1999), script by Caitlín Kiernan, pencils and inks by Al Davison, colors and color separations by Daniel Vozzo, letters by Ellie de Ville

Today in Comics History, April 8: What's worse than the Apocalypse?

A: Matthew Perry being cast as Blade.


from Midnight Suns #1 (Marvel, November 2022), script by Ethan Sacks, pencils and inks by Luigi Zagaria, colors by Antonio Fabela, letters by Joe Sabino
Um, somebody might want to take the SPF 45,000 away from Nico.

Today in Comics History, April 8: Happy birthday, Michele Wolfman!

Born on this day: comic book colorist Michele Wolfman (Daredevil, Hawkman, Flash, Blue Devil, Tomb of Dracula, Captain America, Star Trek, and many more)!


from FOOM #8 (Marvel, December 1974)
Happy birthday, Michele!


from 1975 Mighty Marvel Convention Program Book (Marvel, 1975)

Today in Comics History, April 8, 1994: Tony Stark refrains himself from repulsor-blasting Larry King in the face

from "The Media Takes On Tony Stark" in Iron Man Annual (1976 series) #15 (Marvel, 1994), text by Len Kaminski and Scott Benson

Today in Comics History, April 8, 1947: Buying snappy green suit causes man to say "zowie!"

from Jackie Robinson #1 (Fawcett, Summer 1949), script by Charles Dexter, pencils by Clem Weisbecker, inks by John Jordan

Today in Comics History, April 8, 1513: Li'l Ponce de Leon gets cranky, needs nap, crackers

from "Historical Almanac" in Real Fact Comics #20 (DC, May 1949), creators uncredited and unknown

Today in Comics History, April 8, 1959: Colorist forgets what a quarter to midnight looks like

from newuniversal: 1959 #1 (Marvel/New Universe, September 2008), script by Kieron Gillen, pencils and inks by Greg Scott and Kody Chamberlain, colors by Val Staples, letters by Ed Dukeshire

Today in Comics History, April 8, 1959: Lester has a drink at the Dennis Franz-lookalike bar

from newuniversal: 1959 #1 (Marvel/New Universe, September 2008), script by Kieron Gillen, pencils and inks by Greg Scott and Kody Chamberlain, colors by Val Staples, letters by Ed Dukeshire

Today in Comics History, April 8, 2009: Men enjoy sports like boxing, car racing, and shooting

from Arrow #28 (April 2013), story by Marc Guggenheim, script Katherine Walczak, pencils and inks by Xermanico, colors by Mado Peña, letters by Wes Abbott

Today in Comics History, April 8, 1982: President Reagan finally finishes his Hawkeye/She-Hulk fan fiction

from Avengers #221 (July 1982), co-plot by Jim Shooter, co-plot and script by David Michelinie, pencils by Bob Hall, inks by Brett Breeding, colors by Christie Scheele, letters by Janice Chiang
Bonus Marvel Crossover Event: Ronald Reagan commemorates his team-up with Moon Boy from Devil Dinosaur!

Today in Comics History, April 8, 1925: Caped visitor is 88 years too late

from Bandette #3 (Monkeybrain, January 2013), script by Paul Tobin; art by Colleen Coover

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 99 and Today in Comics History, April 8: Happy Birthday, Alfred!

from Super DC Calendar 1976 (DC, 1975)
According to that fount of information about birthdays and anniversaries in the DCU, the 1976 Super DC Calendar, today is the (Pre-Crisis*) birthday of that greatest gentleman's gentleman, the battling butler, the one and only Alfred Thaddeus Pennyworth! Let's hope Bruce, Dick, Tim, Barbara and Damien take him out for a nice brunch at one of the finer Gotham City restaurants, and not one of those shaped like a giant typewriter or an oversized penguin.

I don't have any panels showing Alfred's birthday or childhood at hand (Hey DC! Do a Teen Alfred comic book, huh? It'll sell a million copies!), so here's a retelling of his very first pre-Crisis appearance to a bewildered and baffled Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson. Let's call it "Alfred: Who He IS and How He Came to be (At Wayne Manor!)":


from Untold Legend of the Batman #2 (DC, August 1980), script by Len Wein, pencils and inks by Jim Aparo, colors by Tatjana Wood
Happy Birthday, Alfred!

*Alfred's birthday has also been listed in a non-canon comic as August 16. As far as I'm concerned, though, today's the day!