Johnny Ryan covers Real Deal 3

Original cover by Lawrence Hubbard; Real Deal Productions 1994. Johnny Ryan's website is here.

Detective Comics #389

Detective Comics #389 (On Sale: May 29, 1969) has a nice cover by Neal Adams.

We begin with "Batman's Evil Eye" by Frank Robbins, Bob Brown and Joe Giella. This is not one of Frank Robbins' better efforts. When a story begins with Professor Crane, AKA the Scarecrow being released from prison and Batman begins striking fear into the hearts of criminals again, it shouldn't take Batman so many pages to figure out who is behind it. This story is so simplistic and half-assedly written that I'm not even going to bother repeating the plot. Suffice to say, Batman scares people and by looking in the mirror he scares himself and in the end the Scarecrow loses.

That is followed by our back-up Batgirl story "Batgirl's Bag of Tricks" by Frank Robbins, Gil Kane and Murphy Anderson. Continuing from last issue, Barbara in a Batgirl costume not her own has followed "Batman" to an airline costume party where her new roommate, whom she is impersonating, is the guest of honor. Seeing "Batman" hook up with others dressed as the Flash, Superman and Green Lantern she has eavesdropped and found out that her new roommate is in a jewel smuggling ring with the other "heroes." She now finds herself taking on the other "heroes," minus Batgirl's weapons-bag.

The gang subdue her, but the fight has brought the police. This gives Barbara the edge and she knocks out both the Flash, Green Lantern and Batman, but Superman gets away. Thinking Barbara is her roommate, Darlene Dawson, she is given the award for Air-Hostess With the Mostest" then beats a hasty retreat. Remembering that Darlene said she was going to visit her Grandfather on this, his birthday, Barbara cycles out to Cosby Corners in search of the Dawsons, not knowing that "Superman" is tailing her, thinking she is Darlene and heading for the jewels she stole from them.

When she finds the Dawsons she learns that Grandpa is actually the brains behind Darlene's crimes. Deciding to take them down Barbara fights Darlene while Gramps pulls out an old Tommy Gun. At the same time "Superman" shows up sees that there are two Darlenes and decides to kill them both. However, it's been a long time since Grandpa's bootlegging days and the Thompson is a little too much gun for him. Bullets fly haphazardly around the room, killing "Superman." Barbara stops Grandpa cold with a two-tiered birthday cake in the chops. This has been reprinted in Batman in the Sixties TPB and Showcase Presents: Batgirl Vol. 1 TPB.

Edited by Julius Schwartz.

Adventure Comics #382

Adventure Comics #382 (On Sale: May 29, 1969) has a Supergirl cover by Curt Swan and Neal Adams.

The feature-length Supergirl story "The Super-Team's Split-Up," is by Cary Bates and Kurt Schaffenberger. Looking at both the cover and the story here, you can see that DC wanted to try a Supergirl book, so long as it looked exactly like a Superman book. It would really take Mike Sekowsky in a year or so to turn this book into anything other than a Superman in a skirt clone.

Edited by Mort Weisinger.

Action Comics #378

Action Comics #378 (On Sale: May 29, 1969) has a great Curt Swan and Neal Adams cover.

We begin with Superman in "The Devil's Partner" by Jim Shooter, Curt Swan and Jack Abel.

That is followed by the Legion of Super-Heroes in "The Forbidden Fruit" by Jim Shooter, Winslow Mortimer and Mike Esposito.

Edited by Mort Weisinger.

Victor Kerlow covers Detective 583

Original cover by Mike Mignola; DC 1988. Victor Kerlow's website is here.

Cole Johnson covers Pep 188

Original cover artist is unknown; Archie Comics 1965. Cole Johnson's website is here.

Green Lantern #70

Green Lantern #70 (On Sale: May 27, 1969) has a nice cover by Gil Kane.

Green Lantern stars in "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Earth" by John Broome, Gil Kane and Vinnie Colletta. I remember this one from when I was a kid, as it has one of the strangest solutions for killing a space monster I have ever read. The Guardians call Green Lantern to take out a gigantic creature that eats gravity. OK, I know that gravity is a force and not a thing, but hey, it eats gravity, OK? Green Lantern is attacked by the creature and eventually kills it by making it eat its own shit, or as John Broome put it, "Its own waste product." I kid you not.

But this issue is not just about shit-eating monsters, it's about a toy factory on the planet Ghyra, where the circuitry in a "Hilar-Toy" goes haywire and instead of making people laugh, it causes people to fight. Unable to fix the indestructible Hilar the makers turn it off and throw it away, but it still finds itself "active" and locates a space ship in the junkyard, which it uses to escape. With no plan of where to go, Hilar sees Green Lantern fly by, returning from giving the gravity eater a shit-eating grin, and follows him back to Earth.

After a run-in with the police for jay-walking the Hilar finds a TV studio as a hiding place. There he interrupts the filming of a TV comedy show which brings him to the attention of Hal Jordan (working his first day as a toy salesman). As Green Lantern he rushes to the studio only to find that any attack against Hilar is rerouted back at himself. Some gangsters see Hilar take out Green Lantern on TV and saying that he only wants to make people laugh. They high-tail it down to the studio and pick up Hilar by pretending to find everything he says funny.

The gangsters win over Hilar's confidence and bring him along when they go to rob a train. When Green Lantern shows up, Hilar again knocks him out cold. When he comes to, Green Lantern finds the gangsters' car and begins to take them out one at a time and then turns to face Hilar. Hilar has realized that his "friends" are evil and tries to communicate that to Green Lantern telepathically, but GL is using his ring to create an impenetrable aura around himself. Lantern uses his ring to steal Hilar's gravity and he crumbles like the toy he is.

Discovering that Hilar is just a malfunctioning toy, Green Lantern returns Hilar to Ghyra, repairs his faulty circuits and as he leaves Hilar is on stage and getting big laughs with his "A funny thing happened on the way to Earth" story.

Edited by Julius Schwartz.

Girls' Romances #142

Girls' Romances #142 (On Sale: May 27, 1969) has a cover by Jay Scott Pike and Vinny Colletta.

We begin with "No Love for Janie" penciled by Jay Scott Pike. If the cover is any indication, it was likely inked by Vinnie Colletta. That is followed by "Possessed by My Love" also penciled by Jay Scott Pike. Next is an untitled Betty's Boutique penciled by John Rosenberger. Lastly is "Meant for Each Other" a reprint from Secret Hearts #36 and drawn by Arthur Peddy and Bernard Sachs.

Edited by Murray Boltinoff.

Mark Hill covers Creepy 32

Original cover by Frank Frazetta; Warren 1970. Mark Hill's website is here.

Josh Burggraf covers Strange Tales 90

Original cover by Jack Kirby and George Klein, Marvel 1961. Josh Burggraf's website is here.

Jeffrey Brown covers Uncanny X-men 142

Original cover by Terry Austin; Marvel 1981. Jeffrey Brown's website is here.

Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #121

Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #121 (On Sale: May 22, 1969) has a great Curt Swan and Neal Adams cover. I love the way Adams' inks respect the Swan pencils on this one.

We begin with "The Three Lives of Superman" by Jim Shooter and Pete Costanza.

That is followed by our cover-story, "Jimmy Olsen's Death Trick," by Leo Dorfman, Curt Swan and Jack Abel.

Edited by Mort Weisinger.

DC Special #4

DC Special #4 (On Sale: May 22, 1969) has a cover by Neal Adams for the 13 Shock-Ending Stories issue.

We begin with a framing sequence for 13 Shock-Ending Stories 13 by Mark Hanerfeld and Bill Draut. This is famous for being the first appearance of Abel, caretaker of the House of Secrets. Not only did Hanerfeld write Abel's first appearance he is the original model for Abel.

Next is "Ghost Writer" drawn by Leonard Starr and reprinted from House of Mystery #19. That is followed by "The Magic Hammer" drawn by Jack Kirby and reprinted from Tales of the Unexpected #16 where it was originally entitled "The Magic Stick."

We next have "A Piece of Rope" from House of Mystery #5. Jerry Grandenetti drew "Last Mile Martin" from House of Mystery #15 "The Dream Lamp " is drawn by John Prentice and is reprinted from Tales of the Unexpected #1.

Next is "Door of No Return" written by Murray Boltinoff and drawn by George Roussos and reprinted from House of Secrets #62. That is followed by "Beware after Dark" drawn by Carmine Infantino and Joe Giella and reprinted from Sensation Mystery #114.

"The Tree Man of Tanganyika" comes to us from House of Mystery #30 and is drawn by Ralph Mayo. Ralph Mayo was the art director of AC Comics in the 1940s. He drew 'Black Terror and Tim' for America's Best Comics, Black Terror and Exciting Comics. He also penciled some 'Miss Masque' splash pages. In the 1950s he drew Jann of the Jungle for Marvel, 'Camilla' for Fiction House and crime stories for Lev Gleason and St. John. He was penciller and/or inker on Dell titles like Dragoon Wells Massacre, Jungle Jim, Lassie, Quentin Durward and Roy Rogers. His first work for DC was in Mr. District Attorney #2 in 1948. He worked mainly on the Johnny Quick feature in Adventure Comics and drew 66 stories in all for DC before his death in 1956. Some of his last work was with Al Williamson on Jann of the Jungle.

Next is "Written in the Sands" drawn by George Papp and reprinted from House of Mystery #26. "The Secret of Salzo the Great" comes to us from artist John Prentice and House of Mystery #2. That is followed by "Secret Locked in the Ice" from House of Secrets #63 and the pen of artist Gene Colan.

Rounding out the issue is "The Bullet Man" drawn by Bernard Baily from Tales of the Unexpected #17 and "The Strange Faces of Death" drawn by Ruben Moreira and reprinted from House of Mystery #19.

Edited by Joe Orlando.

New Book Update

Just got the word from the publisher: "Book went off to printer. Have not rec'd ship date yet, but usually 3-4 weeks, and then another couple weeks to show up in stores."

So look for it in early July. Probably best to order from Amazon.com, as my stuff isn't really big box store-friendly (although I've heard reports that some Borders on the East Coast have carried it).

This book has been a long time coming (the MS was done as of February of 2008), but economic trends and production issues have conspired to drag the whole process out. Nevertheless now, at long last, it's comin' to ya, on a dusty road -- good samurai films? I got a truckload! We're talking magnum opus, people. So if you like your shoes, better take them off, because your socks are gonna get blown right through 'em.

Deadly Couples

You're probably aware of Nagisa Oshima's sex 'n castration classic In the Realm of the Senses. Less known is his follow-up, Empire of Passion (1978). According to Oshima, the films formed a diptych (not unlike Kaneto Shindo's Onibaba and Kuroneko). That is, while the class settings in the two films were diametrically opposed, the dominant themes and characters were much the same. In Oshima's case, both films feature a pair of illicit lovers whose passion leads to violence. However Empire is not the explicit fuck-fest that Realm was, much to the chagrin of Anatole Dauman, the French producer of both films who had signed a three picture deal with Oshima expecting hardcore sex throughout; after Empire, Dauman and Oshima parted company.

Empire of Passion is a ghost story set in the late 19th century concerning a rickshaw driver, his wife and her young lover. Two of these people off the third and throw his corpse down an old well. The victim comes back, of course, scaring the shit out of all involved. The film progresses at a leisurely pace, in accordance with many a French art film of the 70s, but I found it absorbing and would recommend it not only for the brilliant colors and passionate performances, but as a strong candidate for anyone's Japanese ghost film collection.

The Watcher in the Attic (1976), an entry in Nikkatsu studio's Roman Porno line, is an exquisite bit of erotic-grotesquerie concerning another lethal couple. He's a bored young voyeur, she's a spoiled wife who likes getting it on with clowns (really). He peeps at her, she gets off on his peeping, and it's essentially love at first peep. Soon they're on a spree of kinky sex and thrill-killing. Based on the writings of Edogawa Rampo, Japan's ero-guro-meister extraordinaire, The Watcher in the Attic is remarkably well-made and atmospheric, far beyond anything one might expect from Nikkatsu's gooey catalog of 1970s softcore sex films. It stars Renji Ishibashi whom you might recall as the demented old pervert who did so much damage to the young Asami in Miike's Audition. (He also has a memorable scene involving a ladle in Gozu.) Junko Miyashita is quite compelling as the hot wife who enjoys the occasional sit on her "human chair" (you'll see ... ). It's all very twisted and I can't recommend it enough.

Mike Wenthe and Isaac Cates covers Batman 366

Original cover by Walt Simonson; DC 1983. Mike Wenthe's and Isaac Cates's website is here.

Mark Grambau covers Justice League of America 45

Original cover by Mike Sekowsky and Murphy Anderson; DC 1966. Mark Grambau's website is here.

Windy and Willy #2

Windy and Willy #2 (On Sale: May 20, 1969) has a cover by Bob Oksner.

"The Two Astro-Nuts" is of course a reprint from Many Loves of Dobie Gillis #25 by Arnold Drake and Bob Oksner. They have renamed the characters and touched up the artwork to be more modern and to avoid copyright infringement.

Edited by Dick Giordano.

Superboy #158

Superboy #158 (On Sale: May 20, 1969) has a great dramatic cover by Neal Adams.

"Superboy's Darkest Secret" is by Frank Robbins, Bob Brown and Wally Wood. With these great Neal Adams' covers, the interesting Frank Robbins' scripts and Wally Wood's inks, Superboy was one of the more interesting, yet unsung titles DC was producing at the time.

Edited by Murray Boltinoff.

Secret Hearts #137

Secret Hearts #137 (On Sale: May 20, 1969) has a cover by, well, if I had to guess (and since I don't know, I do), I'd say Ric Estrada and Dick Giordano.

We begin with "Forbidden Romance" penciled by Tony Abruzzo. Next is "Today's Heartbreak" a reprint from Secret Hearts #43 inked by Bernard Sachs. We end with "Reach for Happiness Episode 28" by persons unknown.

Edited by Dick Giordano.

Anthro #6

Anthro #6 (On Sale: May 20, 1969) has a cover reported to be by the signed Howie Post, but only a crazy person would deny the Wally Wood inks on the Nima and Embra figures. This is the final issue of Anthro.

(The Marriage of Anthro) is written and penciled by Howie Post and inked by Wally Wood. Anthro leaves the tribe of his uncle to search for Embra. After an encounter with a white lion and a giant, Anthro finds Embra and her father Tugg. The trio return to Do-Ahn's village where a marriage is arranged for Tugg's eldest daughter Ita.

Anthro then proceeds to marry Embra. Before the ceremony is complete, the ritual is challenged by Nima, a woman of the bear tribe. As a result of her challenge Nima and Embra fight for the right to marry Anthro. The girls knock each other out which results in the match ending as a draw. As a result the law requires that Anthro marry both women.

Howie Post's Anthro was a one-of-a-kind character and didn't fit real well in the DC universe. Beginning life in Showcase #74 it would be nine years later before Anthro appeared again and again it would be in the pages of Showcase, this time issue #100 with a small cameo. He would appear only three more times in Crisis on Infinite Earths #2, #5 and #10.

Edited by Joe Orlando.

Cathie Urushibata covers Batman 4

Original cover by Bob Kane and Jerry Robinson; DC 1940. Cathie Urushibata's website is here.

Corentin Pruvot covers Green Lantern 10

Original cover by Gil Kaneand Murphy Anderson; DC 1962. Corentin Pruvot's website is here.

Teen Titans #22

Teen Titans #22 (On Sale: May 15, 1969) has another great Nick Cardy cover.

We begin with the Teen Titans in "Halfway to Holocaust" written and penciled by Neal Adams and inked by Nick Cardy. Continuing from last issue, while Speedy and Wonder Girl battle an extra dimensional creature that suddenly appears in the criminals' control-room, Robin and Kid Flash, under the control of the aliens, are used to discover a third dimensional world, invisible to the Dimension-X-dwellers, which exists adjacent to both their world and Earth. Escaping, they rejoin their teammates in this adjoining dimension, only to be pursued by the aliens.

The battle between Titans and aliens is cut short when a community-intelligence being, the sole sentient native to the newly discovered dimension, takes on the form of a giant archer in imitation of Speedy, and drives the minions of Dimension X back to their own world. Promising that never again will beings from Dimension X use his world as a gateway to Earth, the "archer" allows the Titans to depart in peace. This story has been reprinted in Best of DC #18 and Showcase Presents: Teen Titans Vol. 2 TPB.

The back-up story, "The Origin of Wonder Girl" is by Marv Wolfman, Gil Kane and Nick Cardy. This story is sort of a side story to the first story in this issue. Upon the Titan's return to Earth, Wonder Girl unexpectedly collapses, the result of a recently recurring series of fainting spells. In explanation, she tells the other Titans her origin for the first time.

As a child, she had been saved from an apartment building fire by Wonder Woman, and taken by her to Paradise Island to live after all attempts to ascertain her identity or those of her parents (presumed to be a couple killed in the blaze) had failed. Becoming Queen Hippolyta's foster daughter and Wonder Woman's foster sister, she was unable to compete with the Amazons on a physical level, lacking their special powers, and so was given powers almost identical to those of Wonder Woman by Paula, the Amazon chief scientist, using the Purple Ray.

Returning to the outside world to join the Teen Titans, she was forced to stay behind when the other Amazons sojourned to another dimension to recharge their magical powers, and had been secretly living in Titan Lair since that time. Now, she takes the name Donna Troy as a civilian identity and moves into an apartment in Greenwich Village with new girlfriend Sharon Tracy.

Later, she is contacted by Queen Hippolyta, who informs her that the Amazons' use of the Purple Ray had been accidentally responsible for her recurring weak spells, a problem which has now been corrected. Wonder Girl celebrates her new life by designing a new costume and changing her hairstyle. Reprinted in DC Special Blue Ribbon Digest #5 and Showcase Presents: Teen Titans Vol. 2 TPB.

Edited by Dick Giordano.

Strange Adventures #219

Strange Adventures #219 (On Sale: May 15, 1969) has an Atomic Knights cover (minus the Knights) by Joe Kubert.

Adam Strange stars in "Menace of the Robot Raiders" from Mystery In Space #53 and created by Gardner Fox, Carmine Infantino and Bernard Sachs. Adam Strange returns to Rann to find Alanna in control of a giant robot. The robot and others like it were given to the people of Ranagar in exchange for a mineral by some aliens, the Griks. When the robots rebel, the Griks are believed to be responsible. Adam fights to free Alanna, then he confronts the Griks, who claim to be innocent. Adam traces the controller to Vor Kan, the Ranagaran man responsible for keeping the robots operational. Adam destroys his control device and captures Vor Kan, before being sent back to Earth by the Zeta Beam.

Our cover-story is "The Cavemen of New York" featuring the Atomic Knights, reprinted from Strange Adventures #123 and produced by John Broome and Murphy Anderson. The Atomic Knights visit New York City to find a cache of food and supplies in a large fallout shelter. The city took a direct hit in the war and no life remains. The Knights enter the shelter and are attacked by a band of former men, who now resemble cro-magnons. After fending off the attack, the knights befriend one of the men. They are able to calm the rest of the group as well. After a brief respite underground, protected from the radiation above, the Knights leave New York and the cavemen behind.

Lastly we have a Space Cabbie story "Space-Flight to Danger," from Mystery In Space #28 and created by Otto Binder, Gil Kane and Bernard Sachs. Space Cabbie buys a new battery case for his taxi at an auto parts story. He chooses a case from the bottom of the stack because it is in the best condition. The salesmen doesn't want to sell it to him, but the cab driver refuses the give up the case.

After installing the new battery case, Space Cabbie takes on several jobs. He then notices several bizarre incidents designed to separate him from his cab. He finally allows one of the men to search his cab and steal the battery case. Space Cabbie then summons the Interplanetary Police and is able to lead them to the crook.

The crook is working for the auto parts salesmen. The battery case that Space Cabbie purchased contains a map to the gang's hidden loot. The police arrest the gang, and Space Cabbie earns a reward for their capture.

Edited by Julius Schwartz.

Date With Debbi #4

Date With Debbi #4 (On Sale: May 15, 1969) has a cover by Samm Schwartz. This is the last issue to use this original logo.

We begin with "T.V. or Not T.V.," "And the Beat Goes On" and "Double Standard," all Debbi stories by persons unknown. Next is an untitled Flowers story drawn by Phil Mendez. We end with "Tennis Bums" a Debbi story by Henry Boltinoff and John Rosenberger which was reprinted in Best of DC #39.

Edited by Dick Giordano.

Tokyo Zombie

While I'm not a big fan of zombie flicks, sometimes one comes along that has just the right balance of innovation and humor to make it pop (Dead Alive, Shawn of the Dead, The Signal, Slither). In this regard, Tokyo Zombie fits the bill. For one thing, it's based on a manga (a somewhat primitivist effort by Yusaku Hanakuma). Manga movies are always culty and outrageous and I can't get enough of them (Lady Snowblood, Oldboy, Female Prisoner Scorpion, The Story of Ricky, Lone Wolf & Cub, Ichi the Killer, The Razor, etc. etc.).

Then you've got two Japanese cult cinema stalwarts, Miike's go-to guy Sho Aikawa and everybody's favorite spaced-out, too-cool-for-school dude Tadanobu Asano. They're a pair of lamebrain laborers at a toxic Tokyo dump known as Black Fuji. Seems the blend of industrial and consumer waste products has begun to spawn zombies, and before long the city has morphed into a post-apocalyptic nightmare society in which the elite class has enslaved what's left of the non-zombie population and entertain themselves with neo-gladiatorial battles between the slaves and the zombies. Then things start to get weird ...

For a low-budget film, Tokyo Zombie delivers, thanks largely to a low-key, deadpan vibe that both contrasts and enhances the bizarre doings in Tokyo town. It's also the first film of it's genre to advocate the use of jiujitsu as the primary defense against zombies. Check it out, Sid.

Jimmy Giegerich covers The Savage Sword of Conan 38

Original cover by Earl Norem; Marvel 1979. Jimmy Giegerich's website is here.

Jon Boam covers Shazam! 34

Original cover by Alan Weiss; DC 1978. Jon Boam's website is here.

Superman's Girl Friend Lois Lane #93

Superman's Girl Friend Lois Lane #93 (On Sale: May 13, 1969) has a cover by Curt Swan and Neal Adams featuring the New Wonder Woman.

"The Superman-Wonder Woman Team" is by Robert Kanigher and Irv Novick. I remember just liking the fact that DC was showcasing the powerless Wonder Woman in other books, though I don't remember anything about this story in particular. This has been reprinted in Diana Prince: Wonder Woman Vol. 2 TPB.

Edited by Mort Weisinger.

Phantom Stranger #2

Phantom Stranger #2 (On Sale: May 13, 1969) has a cover by Bill Draut. The character is still two issues away from a stylistic redesign at the hands of Neal Adams which will transform the character forever.

The new story this issue is "The Man Who Died Three Times" by Mike Friedrich and Bill Draut. With this story they bring the Doctor Thirteen character into interaction with the Stranger. This was reprinted in Showcase Presents Phantom Stranger Vol. 1 TPB.

They round out the book with reprints. From the old Phantom Stranger #1 comes "The House of Strange Secrets" by John Broome, Carmine Infantino and Joe Giella. Neal Hunter is lured to a strange house after he is led of the main road. Neal enters the house and is greeted by a man who wishes to kill him. The Phantom Stranger appears and protects Neal. The killer then disappears and the house changes.

Neal and the Phantom Stranger explore the house as the killer strikes again. The Stranger learns that the killer is the former apprentice of a dead magician named Robart. He believes that by killing Hunter he will gain immortality. The Stranger then exposes the killer's magic as a fraud and rescues Neal. The apprentice is killed himself during an attack on the Stranger.

From Star Spangled Comics #128 comes Doctor Thirteen in "The Girl Who Lived 5,000 Years" by France Herron and Leonard Starr.

Edited by Joe Orlando.

Girls' Love Stories #144

Girls' Love Stories #144 (On Sale: May 13, 1969) has a cover by supposedly George Tuska and Vinny Colletta. It looks nothing like Tuska and certainly nothing like the Tuska/Colletta art on Iron Man at Marvel. Oddly, this cover falls back on the old logo that was replaced two issues prior.

We begin with "Can Love Last Forever?" drawn by John Rosenberger. Next is "Too Late for Tears" a reprint from Secret Hearts #43 drawn by John Romita and Bernard Sachs. That is followed by "He Loves Me... He Loves Me Not" drawn by Jay Scott Pike. Lastly is our cover-story, "Memory of Margret" drawn by George Tuska and Vinny Colletta.

This is George Tuska's first work of DC in ten years (Tales of the Unexpected #34) and his first cover since Uncle Sam #3 in 1942.

George Tuska studied at the National Academy School of Art. In 1939, he became an assistant on the Scorchy Smith newspaper comic strip. As he explained in an interview in Alter Ego #3, he also worked for for the Eisner & Iger studio, "alongside Bob Powell, Lou Fine, and Mike Sekowsky" , adding that the studio later expanded "with Charles Sultan, John Celardo, Nick Cardy, and [writer] Toni Blum joining in. I worked on 'Shark Brodie' [for Fiction House], 'Spike Marlin' [in Harvey Comics' Speed Comics, as Carl Larson], and other strips" for comics including Fiction House's Jungle Comics and Wings Comics, and Fox Comics' Wonderworld Comics and Mystery Men Comics."

Tuska later left to work with packager Harry "A" Chesler's studio, helping to supply content for such Fawcett Comics publications as Captain Marvel Adventures, and for such characters as Golden Arrow, Uncle Sam and El Carim. Tuska also drew the debut of the Quality Comics feature Hercules — starring a superhuman circus strongman, not the mythological figure — in Hit Comics #1 (July 1940).

Following Tuska's military service in World War II, he worked on Lev Gleason Publications' comic-book series Crime Does Not Pay, and later became one of the last writer-artists of Scorchy Smith, which ran until 1961. Tuska also did the comic strip Buck Rogers from 1959-1967.

Tuska freelanced primarily for Marvel during the 1960s Silver Age of comic books and beyond, penciling and occasionally inking other artists on series including Ghost Rider, Luke Cage, Power Man, Black Goliath, Sub-Mariner, The X-Men and the movie tie-in series Planet of the Apes. His first Marvel story, a "Tales of the Watcher" feature in Tales of Suspense #58 (Nov. 1964), had a special introduction by editor Stan Lee hailing the return of the Golden Age great. He enjoyed a nearly ten-year, sometimes briefly interrupted, run on Iron Man from issue #5 (Sept. 1968) to #106 (Jan. 1978).

His work at DC would include numerous romance and horror/mystery stories, but he is best remembered at DC for his super-hero work, starting with Challengers of the Unknown #73 in 1970. Besides the Challs, Tuska would work on the Teen Titans, Superboy, Superman in Action Comics and Superman Family, Jimmy Olsen in Superman Family, Justice League of America, Legion of Super-Heroes, Superman/Batman and Black Lightning in World's Finest Comics, Masters of the Universe, Green Lantern, Infinity Inc., and Fury of Firestorm.

George Tuska also pulled a 15-year stint drawing The World's Greatest Superheroes Present Superman newspaper strip from 1978-1993. His last DC work was on a Wildcat story in Wildcats: Mosaic #1 in 2000. Tuska retired from active comics work as of the 2000s and lives in Manchester, New Jersey where he does commissioned art. He also makes the rounds of many of the comic conventions even though he is currently 93 years old.

Edited by Joe Orlando.

Binky's Buddies #4

Binky's Buddies #4 (On Sale: May 13, 1969) has a cover by Bob Oksner.

We have four stories this issue: "From Riches to Rags," "The Hero," "Tolling the Bells" and "What a Banana" staring Binky's Buddies, Binky, Buzzy and Benny all by person's unknown.

Edited by Joe Orlando.

Angel and the Ape #5

Angel and the Ape #5 (On Sale: May 13, 1969) has a cover by Bob Oksner. It looks like the staff of Benedict Arnold High School (a school populated by Universal Horror-style monsters) from the now canceled Adventures of Bob Hope comic are now a part of Angel and the Ape.

Once again we know very little about this issue. It begins with "Pigeon Mob" drawn by Bob Oksner and finishes with "The Case of Hippie, Hippie, Hooray" drawn by Artie Saaf and Wally Wood.

Edited by Joe Orlando.

Alessandro Padovano covers Hellboy: Conqueror Worm 3

Original cover by Mike Mignola; 2001 Dark Horse. Alessandro Padovano can be contacted at: alessandro.padovano at gmail.com