Today in Comics History, July 25: Happy birthday, Rosalind Franklin!

Born on this day in 1920: Rosalind Franklin, chemist and X-ray crystallographer who's (now) known for her work detailing and comprehending DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), RNA (ribonucleic acid), viruses, coal, and graphite.

What? You think DNA/RNA was unravelled by Francis Crick and James Watson? Think again, brother (sisters prob'bly already know) that they took much of her work and which has been historically represented as their own, winning the Nobel Prize. Say it loud and say it strong: Rosalind Franklin is the unsung hero of DNA/RNA researach.


from "A Doubly Twisted String with a Million Knots" in Femme Magnifique (Hi-Fi Academy Press, September 2017), script by Mike Carey, pencils and inks by Ευγενία Κουμάκη as Eugenia Koumaki, colors by Hi-Fi, letter by Aditya Bidikar

Today in Comics History, July 25-26, 1949: Baby named abruptly

from Larry Doby, Baseball Hero one-shot (Fawcett, 1950), script by Charles Dexter
(Happy birthday, Christina Doby!)

Today in Comics History, June 25: Then Jessica sued the landlord for everything he had and became a multimillionaire

from Spider-Woman (1978 series) #20 (Marvel, November 1979), script by Mark Gruenwald, co-scenario by Steven Grant, pencils by Frank Springer, inks by Mike Esposito, colors by Nel Yomtov, letters by John Costanza
Remember kids, ALAB!

Today in Comics History, July 25, 1931: Aunt May scolds Peter for writing to a racist and pretending to be the executor of his estate

from Providence #11 (Avatar, November 2016), script by Alan Moore, pencils and inks by Jacen Burrows, colors by Juan Manuel Rodriguez, letters by Kurt Hathaway

Today in Comics History, July 25: Happy birthday, Alfred Letourneur!

Happy birthday to champion bicyclist Alfred Letourneur, born this day in 1907! He broke the bike speed record in 1941 at nearly 109 miles per hour! He would have gone faster, but the baseball cards stuck into his spokes slowed him down a little.


advertisement for Bendix Aviation Corp., from Quality Comics cover-dated August 1944
His nickname was "le diable rouge," which I believe means "the blimp with makeup on." Seems needlessly cruel, but you know how kids are.


advertisement for Schwinn Bicycles from Harvey Comics cover-dated May 1950
Happy birthday, Al, you bikin' fool!

Today in Comics History, July 25: Hoberman is still sore and it's bugging him

from "The Sins of the Father..." in Action Comics Weekly #606 (DC, June 28, 1988), script by Martin Pasko, pencils and inks by Dan Spiegle, colors by Carl Gafford, letters by Carrie Spiegle

Today in Comics History, July 25: Happy birthday, George Roberts!

Born on this day: George Roberts, member of the Production Department at Marvel, and comic book colorist and letterer (Dark Dominion, Eternal Warrior, Unity Saga, Archer & Armstrong, Bloodshot, Deathmate, more)!


from Marvel Age #91 (Marvel, August 1990), text by Chris Eliopoulis and Barry Dutter, pencils and inks by Ron Zalme, colors by Renee Witterstaetter
Happy birthday, George!

Today in Comics History, July 25, 1951: Okay, okay, enough baseball thrills; let's get to the killing Brooklyn part

from "Home Run That Killed Brooklyn" in Baseball Thrills #3 (Ziff-Davis, Summer 1952), pencils by Ross Andru (?), letters by Ben Oda

Today in Comics History, July 25: "Attention, Batman: That one kid's head is huge!"

from "Face Your Fears" in Young Justice/Batman: The Brave and the Bold Super Sampler (FCBD 2011) #1 one-shot (DC, May 2011), script by Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani, pencils and inks by Mike Norton, colors by Zac Atkinson, letters by Carlos M. Mangual
If it isn't a Whitman Sampler, is it really a "super" sampler?

Today in Comics History, July 25: Well, I know whose roller rink birthday party I'm going to tonight!

from Assassinistas #2 (IDW/Black Crown, January 2018), script by Tini Howard, pencils and inks by Gilbert Hernandez, colors by Rob Davis, letters by Aditya Bidikar

Today in Comics History, July 25, 1986: Aunt May (slowly) enters the New Universe

from D.P. 7 Annual #1 (Marvel/New Universe, November 1987), script by Mark Gruenwald, pencils by Lee Weeks, inks by Tony DeZuniga, colors by Paul Becton, letters by Phil Felix

Today in Comics History, July 25, 1946: Oh, your hair is beautiful / Ah, tonight / Atomic

from "Atom Bomb Thief" in Weird Fantasy (1950 series) #14 (EC, September 1950; script, pencils and inks by Harvey Kurtzman; colors by Marie Severin; letters by Jim Wroten
Weird Fantasy #14 appears to have been EC's extra-explosive "Atomic Bomb" issue:


cover of Weird Fantasy #14, pencils and inks by Al Feldstein, colors by Marie Severin, letters by Jim Wroten
In fact, the very first story in the issue is about Bill Gaines and Al Feldstein plotting such a story:


from "Cosmic Ray Bomb Explosion!" in Weird Fantasy #14; co-plot, script, pencils, and inks by Al Feldstein, co-plot by Bill Gaines, colors by Marie Severin; letters by Jim Wroten
They are delighted by the plotline that emerges, starring Flattop, Mr. Lodge, and Frank Nelson:


Needless to say, the true-life Feds in the real world are not amsued at Gaines' and Feldstein's comic book. Everybody's a critic!


Now these comics panels, you'll find in the dictionary next to a picture of Alanis Morrissette and the word "ironic":


That was of course the final story by Gaines and Feldstein, and the complete end of the EC Comics line. Not to mention all other comic books. However, these stories were recently reprinted in a lovely trade hardcover, and for that we can now thank the Atomic Supermen Who Rules Over Us. All, hail, Atomic Superman! We are definitely not plotting ways to overthrow you!

Today in Comics History, July 25: Zatanna sues Rafael DiRienzi for breach of contract

from "The Sins of the Father..." in Action Comics Weekly #606 (DC, June 28, 1988), script by Martin Pasko, pencils and inks by Dan Spiegle, colors by Carl Gafford, letters by Carrie Spiegle

Today in Comics History, July 25: But what of the little children who long to meet fairy tale characters in Upstate New York?

from "The Sins of the Father..." in Action Comics Weekly #606 (DC, June 28, 1988), script by Martin Pasko, pencils and inks by Dan Spiegle, colors by Carl Gafford, letters by Carrie Spiegle

Today in Comics History, July 25, 1985: Feast of Papa Ogou (Observed); Swamp Thing finally learns to answer to his name

from Swamp Thing (1985 series) #41 (DC, October 1985), script by Alan Moore, pencils by Stephen R. Bissette, inks by Alfredo Alcala, colors by Tatjana Wood, letters by John Costanza

Today in Comics History, July 25: Henry Clayton keeps his appointment bwah-ha-ha-ha-ha!

cover of Black Magic (1950 series) v.3 #5 (#23) (Prize, April 1953), pencils and colors by Jack Kirby, inks by Jack Kirby or Joe Simon (?), letters by Ben Oda
What's even more astonishing is that this scene does not appear in this comic book!

Today in Comics History, July 25: When Nick Fury was still a 98-pound weakling

from "The Death of a Romantic" in Heartthrobs #3 (DC/Vertigo, March 1999), script by Peter Milligan, pencils and inks by Eduardo Risso, colors by Grant Goleash, letters by Clem Robins