Today in Comics History, April 22: Happy birthday, Ralph Byrd!

Born on this day in 1909: actor Ralph Byrd, who appeared in dozens of movies and film serials across two decades, including The Trigger Trio, S.O.S. Tidal Wave, The Howards of Virginia, The Mark of Zorro, North West Mounted Police, The Son of Monte Cristo, Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book, Radar Secret Service, Jungle Goddess (those last two riffed on TV's Mystery Science Theater 3000), and lots more, but he's especially know as Chester Gould's square-jawed detective Dick Tracy in four serials. When the role was recast at RKO in 1945 with Morgan Conway, movie exhbitors protested and Byrd returned to the role to do two more features in 1947!


photo cover of Ralph Byrd on A Cop Called Tracy #7 (Avalon, 1999)
Byrd played another comics character role portraying cowboy crimefighter Greg Sanders/Saunders in 1947's movie serial The Vigilante: Fighting Hero of the West from Columbia.


cover of Real Fact Comics #10 (DC/National, September 1947), pencils and inks by Mort Meskin
DC Comics didn't adapt the story, but they did publish a making-of-the-movie-series story in Real Fact Comics!


from "How a Movie Serial Is Made!" in Real Fact Comics #10; script by Jack Schiff, Mort Weisinger, and/or Bernard Breslauer; pencils by Mort Meskin, inks by George Roussos
Happy birthday, Ralph Byrd!

Memorize this calendar for November 2023! Or, clip it out and put it in your pocket!

In 2023, November starts on a Wednesday, so I can finally roll out this panel I've been saving where there's a...well, November calendar that begins on a Wednesday.


from "Mental Marvel" in Real Fact Comics #5 (DC, November 1946); script by Jack Schiff, Mort Weisinger, and/or Bernard Breslauer; pencils and inks by Nat Edson
Dumbass there is standing over half of it, so it probably won't be the best calendar to hang up on your wall. That's why you wanna wait an hour or two to get the Marvel and DC Calendars that work in 2023, right here on this very blog! Don't say Bully never gave ya anything on the first of November!

Today in Comics History, September 19, 1783: The Golden Age of Ballooning

This is a much expanded and updated version of a post originally published September 19, 2016.


Yes, t'was today in 1783, that Joseph and Etienne Montgolfier initiated the livestock-crewed flight that ushered in the Golden Age of Ballooning!


from "Airecords" in Adventure Comics #40 (DC/Detective Comics, Inc., July 1939), by Terry Gilkison

Today in Comics History, September 14, 1814: Comic books would like to remind you that today's the anniversary of the writing of "The Star Spangled Banner," our traditional, unsingable, racist national anthem

This is an expanded and updated version of a post originally published September 14, 2012.


cover of Magic Comics #36 (David Mckay, July 1942), painting by Edgar Franklin Wittmack

Today in Comics History, June 10: Happy birthday, Henry Morton Stanley!

This is an expanded and updated version of a post originally published June 10, 2022.

Born on this day in 1841: Henry Morton Stanley, reporter and explorer who supposedly uttered the phrase "Dr. Livingston, I presume?" And we all know that when you presume, you make a pres out of you and me. As I depict these events using comic books, feel free to read along in safety...all panels of African natives calling Stanley "bwana" have been excised!


from "Historical Almanac" in Real Fact Comics #21 (DC, July 1949), pencils and inks by Joe Kubert

Today in Comics History, May 9, 1754: The secret ingredient on tonight's Iron Chef is snake

from "Scoops...Pictures to Remember!" in Real Fact Comics #6 (DC, January 1947), pencils and inks by George Roussos

Today in Comics History, May 3: Happy birthday, Bing Crosby!

Born on this date in 1903: Bing Crosby, actor, singer, comedian, and comic book star. In fact, Bing's been in comics almost since their invention!


from "Star-Light" in Action Comics (1938 series) #5 (DC, October 1938), pencils and inks by Sheldon Moldoff

Today in Comics History, January 24, 1848: YEE-HAW! GOLD!

This is an expanded and updated version of a post originally published January 24, 2021.


from "The World's Greatest Gold Strike" in Real Fact Comics #15 (DC, July 1948); script by Jack Schiff, Mort Weisinger, and Bernie Breslauer; pencils and inks by Howard Sherman

Today in Comics History, December 24, 1925, Christmas Eve: The John Logie Baird Christmas Special is brought to you by Rheostats! Rheostats! Have you spent your last two shillings on them yet?

from "The Twist of a Dial" in Real Fact Comics #12 (DC, January 1948), script by Jack Schiff, Mort Weisinger, and/or Bernard Breslauer; pencils and inks by Win Mortimer

Today in Comics History, December 17, 1903: Compared to other realities, our Wright Brothers totally suck

This is an expanded and updated version of a post originally published December 17, 2014.

Today in American History (not just comics, altho' they overlap, as you shall see): one of the most important technological steps forward in humanity as the Wright Brothers finally realized our dream of flying. (Insert your own lost luggage joke here.)


from "Scoops...Pictures to Remember" in Real Fact Comics #1 (DC, March 1946), pencils and inks by George Roussos
Because the name of the comic book is Real Facts, i assure you that is fact, brother, just exactly as it happened, maybe minus Lex Luthor there underneath the yellow hat. Exciting, huh?

Today in Comics History, December 15, 1944: Fate and/or Nazis make Glenn Miller a liar

from "The Fighting Band-Leader" in Real Fact Comics #9 (DC, July 1947); script by Jack Schiff, Mort Weisinger, and/or Bernard Breslauer; pencils and inks by Fred Ray

Today in Comics History, November 27: Happy birthday, Ted Husing!

Born on this day in 1901: sportscaster and radio/movie announcer Ted Husing!

Say, where'd ya get the green suit, Ted?


from "Ace Sportscaster" in Real Fact Comics #6 (DC, January 1947), pencils and inks by Jack Lehti

Today in Comics History, November 7, 1872: Worst episode ever of The Love Boat

from "The Ship with the Phantom Crew!" in Real Fact Comics #16 (DC, September 1948); script by Jack Schiff, Mort Weisinger, and/or Bernard Breslauer; pencils and inks by Win Mortimer (?)

Today in Comics History, October 18, 1944: Captain mulls buying a smaller Moleskine diary next year

from "The Coast Guard Lady" in Real Fact Comics #4 (DC, September 1946), script by Jack Schiff, Mort Weisinger, and/or Bernie Breslauer; artist uncredited and unknown

Today in Comics History, October 15, 1944: US troops disembark from the U.S.S. Peter Max

from "The Coast Guard Lady" in Real Fact Comics #4 (DC, September 1946), script by Jack Schiff, Mort Weisinger, and Bernie Breslauer

Today in Comics History, October 8, 1871: The Atom attempts to pin another one of his heinous crimes upon an innocent cow

This is an expanded and updated version of a post originally published October 8, 2014.




from "Suddenly...the Witness Vanished!" in Detective Comics #432 (DC, February 1973), script by Elliot S! Maggin, pencils and inks by Murphy Anderson, letters by Ben Oda

Today in Comics History, September 26, 1908: Tony Stark destroys Brooklyn

from "Scoops...Pictures to Remember!" in Real Fact Comics #15 (DC, July 1948), pencils and inks by Phil Berube

Today in Comics History, September 26, 1933: Feds are pleasantly punctual

from "How the G-Men Capture Public Enemies!" in Real Fact Comics #11 (November 1947), pencils and inks by George Roussos

Today in Comics History, September 14, 1923: Jack Dempsey cruelly punches a defenseless, innocent bull

from "Scoops...Pictures to Remember!" in Real Fact Comics #6 (DC, January 1947), pencils and inks by George Roussos

Today in Comics History, September 9, 1900: Colonel Theodore Cruz Sr. flees Texas for Arctic Circle

from "The Isle of the Dead" in Real Fact Comics #14 (DC, May 1948), script by Jack Schiff, Mort Weisinger, and/or Bernie Breslauer; pencils and inks by Howard Sherman (?)