Today in Comics History, November 10: Off-Broadway production of Wicked goes badly awry

from Starman (1994 series) #44 (DC, July 1998), script by James Robinson, pencils by Mike Mayhew, inks by Wade Von Grawbadger, colors by Gregory Wright, letters by Kurt Hathaway

Today in Comics History, January 7: Happy birthday, Phantom Lady!

Born on this day, according to the DC Super Calendar 1976: Sandra Knight, the effervescent but sometimes hard-to-see Golden Age crimefighter known as Phantom Lady! (Not to be confused with Phantom Girl, who is more than 1,000 years younger.) She was created by the Eisner & Iger Studio and drawn by Arthur Peddy, who had a deft hand with a glamor girl character (he also drew Marvel/Atlas's "Jann of the Jungle").


from Super DC Calendar 1976 (DC, 1975), letters by Ben Oda

A Month of... Pancakes! Day 26: Pancakes, Pork and Cheesecake

On the very first day of this fine flapjack feature, Pancake Pal Erich grilled griddled me the request

I hope you'll include the Golden Age Phantom Lady #14. ("Juss what liddle Porky needs...flapjacks!")

I hadn't read that before, Erich, and it's a hoot! And in addition to its owl-esque properties, it's also the subject of today's post! In thankfulness, Erich, please consider yourself the worthy recipient of a light and fluffy, golden-brown No-Bull Prize! (With Syrup!)

Say, what's that about this Porky fella anyway?


Panels from "A Shroud for the Bride!" in Phantom Lady #14 (October 1947); script by Ruth Roche (?), pencils and inks by Matt Baker
I hereby propose that Porky Mead is the Sensational Comics Find of 1947, and that his catchphrase, a tipisly slurred "Juss what liddle Porky needs...flapjacks!" should be the advertising motto of Bisquick. Remember in those heady, boom-town post-War days when all the kids were saying it? Remember how many laughs Fred Allen got on his show when it became a running gag? Remember Bogart using it as his dying words in the motion picture The Treasure of the Sierra Madre House of Pancakes (Warner Bros, 1948)? Sure, we all do!

As you might have guessed, Porky not only got his pancakes, he picked up a date to the ball that night. Rosie the waitress was her name, and it's nice to see a very early role by Nancy Walker. (Seriously, ladies, don't accept dates from strangers unless you're in a fairy tale and wearing glass slippers.) Trouble is: that night at the ball, Rosie winds up...smothered in syrup murdered! There will now be a slight pause while we all mentally hum and suspenseful chord to ourselves. (Da da DAAAAAAH!)

Of course, since this here comic book is the property of Phantom Lady, retroactively canonical cousin of Ted "Starman"/"Meanwhile, Back at Justice League Headquarters" Knight, even though they started out at completely different competing comic book companies. All together now: Thanks, Roy Thomas! P.L. shines her headlights on crime by tracking down and apprehending Rosie's murderer by trying shoes on random debutantes. Hey, maybe it is a fairy tale! But honestly, I don't think that's entirely the full focus of the story itself. We now present, without comment (because i'm too young to look at 'em) assorted and completely random panels from the rest of the story. Say, Doctor Wertham!









Phantom Lady! She don't need no steenkin' Comics Code!

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Down the Internet Wormhole Dept.: One thing I did not expect to find when I was researching some of the tangent jokes in this post (sometimes termed "looking for Wonder Woman on a Jet Ski") is that Nancy Walker did a concept album entitled I Hate Men.



"That's offensive to men!" declares a great wailing of Internet Bros.