GARAGE SALES ARE NO, BUT NOT FOR LONG

We’re having a heat wave here in Medina, Ohio, home of the universe famous Tony Isabella Vast Accumulation of Stuff garage sales. That has made it difficult for me to get ready for the sales because it’s so hot in the garage. That and a few other household and personal issues have caused me to change what I’m planning and push back the start of my garage sale by a week.

The most important thing about having garage sales in the midst of a pandemic is limiting the number of customers I have in my garage at any given time. Towards that end, you can make an appointment to shop at my sale.

You have to e-mail me or send me a private message on Facebook to schedule your appointment. These appointments are one-on-one, but I will allow you to bring one other person to the sale. No one but you, your guest and yours truly will be in the garage during your appointment. There are rules, but I’ll get to them a little further down in today’s bloggy.

If you see my garage door open for an appointment, you will be able to shop at my sale AFTER the customer who made the appointment has finished shopping and left the garage. I’ll have chairs set up in the driveway so you can maintain your social distance until it is your turn to shop. I will only allow two customers in my garage at any given time.

My first appointment is on Monday, July 20, at noon. My second is on Tuesday, July 21, at 9 am. If there are customers waiting, I’ll keep the sale going until you’ve all had your chance to shop at my sale. But, again, only two at a time.

I'll be as flexible as possible with these appointments. Most of the time, I can schedule appointments any day of the week and any time of the day from 9 am to 7 pm. However, sometimes, I’ll be too busy with other stuff to give you the appointment you request.

In addition to the appointments, I plan on opening my garage door most every Friday and Saturday from 9 am to noon. Only two people will be allowed in the garage at a time.

There are other equally important rules.

YOU MUST WEAR A MASK. If you absurdly find this to be some sort of infringement on your freedom, don’t come to my garage sale. I will not make an exception for you.

MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING AT ALL TIMES. Try to keep six feet away from any other customer. Most of my tables are six feet long, which will give you a good idea of what that distance is.

USE THE HAND SANITIZER OR WIPES. I’ll have hand sanitizer and wipes as you walk into the garage sale. I’ll have also have a few extra masks in case you forgot yours at home.

CASH ONLY. At some point in the distant future, when the world is a little safer and conventions are again possible, I will be able to take credit cards. Not this year.

NO WEAPONS. Unless you are an on duty police officer or member of the armed service, you will not be allowed to bring any gun, rifle, bazooka, sword, bow and arrows, etc. onto my property. Don’t try to “outfox” me trying to bring something not included on this list as I have a very wide range of what I consider “etc.”

NO RACIST GEAR. This includes (but is not remotely limited to) Confederate paraphernalia, white supremacist paraphernalia and anything Trump or MAGA related. It’s a garage sale, not a platform for your political, religious or social stuff. My property, my rules.

My garage sale is still coming together at this point. I know I’ll have lots of comic books for sale, many of them priced at a dollar or a quarter. I’ll have Isabella-related books and posters. There will be lots of books and trade paperbacks. There will be cool odds and ends. There will be almost two tables of DVDs and Blu-rays at a buck or two each. There will be copies of the British comic war digest Commando at fifty cents a pop.

My $10 mystery boxes will be in short supply initially because it does take me quite a bit of time to put them together. Until I have more of them, I’ll be limiting their sale to one per customer per visit. Still, since one of the primary objectives of my VAOS garage sales is to reduce significantly my Vast Accumulation of Stuff, I’ll try to increase the availability of the mystery boxes over the summer.

As always, if you buy Isabella books or items from me, I will sign them for free.

In the past, I’ve also signed Isabella stuff for free, even if you didn’t buy it from me. I’m still going to do that...with a caveat. You must first buy $25 worth of stuff from me before I’ll sign your  “didn’t buy it from me” Isabella items for free. Otherwise, I’ll be charging my usual $5 per signature.

I’m going to post updates on my garage sale in this blog and on my social media [Facebook and Twitter]. I’ll post my usual notices on Craig’s List and on Next Door. I won’t be advertising in the local Medina newspaper because, well, because those expensive classified ads have rarely bought me any customers.

If there are questions about my garage sale that I haven’t answered in the above, feel free to e-mail or private message me. I’ll do my best to answer them to your satisfaction.

That’s all for now. I’ll be back soon with more stuff. Be safe, be sane, be wonderful to one another.

© 2020 Tony Isabella

COMING SOON

I'm taking a couple days off from the bloggy thing to work on my upcoming garage sales. I'll be back on Friday with an update on those sales and a handy guide to where you can find me on line.

After that...

I'm working on several different bloggy things. I'm doing them piecemeal. Whichever one is finished first will appear on Saturday.

My goal is to post something new every day. I'm hoping to achieve that by the end of the month.

Stay safe, sane and well, my friends.

Tony

TONY’S TIPS #330

I have devoted my life to working in an industry of moral cowards. When writing the openings of my “Tony’s Tips” columns, I generally try to be upbeat. That’s not the case this time around.

In recent weeks, we have learned of too many comics professionals who have sexually abused and harassed women and, in some cases, men, in our field. Some very big names in comics have made a practice of grooming young women to be the fulfillment of their sexual wishes. Widening the scope, we’ve learned of bullying, discrimination and outright racism.

In 2005, in a hot tub at the hotel where Mid-Ohio-Con was starting the next day, Charles Brownstein of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund assaulted a young woman. He got a slap on the wrist, completed some sort of bullshit program and was free to continue his predator ways. In 2010, another young woman he abused was forced to sign an NDA or have to pay back the moving expenses the Fund had given her. At least four people who were on the board or otherwise working for the CBLDF in 2010 were still on the board or otherwise working for the organization when Brownstein was “resigned” last month. Only one of those four people resigned when the truth came out.

Wrap your head around that. People who covered up Brownstein’s vile behavior. People who enabled it. People who protected Brownstein. Still involved with the CBLDF. Facing no consequences for what they did. Not being held accountable for what they did.

No big name creators have spoken out demanding those individuals be removed from the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Only a handful of creators have expressed support for my position. None of the comics news sites have demanded accountability. It is a shameful example of moral cowardice.

There are additional stories coming out of DC Comics and Dark Horse Comics. Again, those who have covered up for predators and enabled predators and protected predators have faced zero consequences for their actions. Again, no big name creators have demanded that they be held accountable. Again, no comics news sites have demanded they be held accountable. Moral cowards.

I’m used to standing alone when it comes to this stuff. I suppose I took to heart the lessons I learned from comic-book heroes as a kid. However imperfectly, I have tried to lead my life in a manner compatible with those lessons. I don’t want to believe I am alone among comics creators in this. As the song goes, I’m still holding out for a hero. Preferably a great many heroes.

There is a right side of history. Some would say it sometimes bends left and sometimes bends right. That’s a false narrative. There is unquestionably a right side of history. A side that doesn’t cover up predatory behavior, a side that doesn’t enable predators to keep abusing people, a side that doesn’t protect predators.

Ask the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund on which side it stands. Ask comics publishers on which side they stand. Ask the big-name comics creators on which side they stand.

I know where I stand.

******************************
Rachel Rising by Terry Moore [Abstract Studios; $55] is the latest chapter in my reading and re-reading of all Moore’s self-published comics. It is a brilliant, but often dark saga of Rachel Beck. She was murdered. She came back to life. She’s looking to solve her own murder with the help of family members and strange new friends. It is a scary story that dives right into supernatural power and evil. It is not without humor, but horror is always a turn of the page away. It has great characters and great character development. It has many surprises. And I’ll be gosh-darned if I’m going to reveal them and take away even the smallest part of your enjoyment of yet another Moore epic.

I have read thousands of pages of Terry Moore comics this year and can’t wait to start the next Moore series on my list. If Stan Sakai is our greatest living cartoonist, Moore isn’t far behind him. In a comics industry filled with meandering epics that go on and on, Moore shows time and time again that he can tell a truly epic story.

Rachel Rising is this week’s pick of the week, earning my highest recommendation. I’m certain you will never be disappointed by any of Moore’s works. This is the good stuff.

ISBN 978-1-892597-62-5

                                                                                

I absolutely love the TV series Stargirl. It has the same heart and respect for its comic-book origins as the Black Lightning series. This came as no surprise since the TV series is the brainchild of Courtney Whitmore creator Geoff Johns.

The first episode of the Stargirl TV series knocked me for a loop with its tragic opening flashback scene. I barely had time to catch my breath when I was introduced to Courtney, her stepdad Pat Dugan, her mom, her stepbrother and a high school/small town with so much drama and personality that I couldn’t wait to see what would happen next and which new characters I would meet. I now have a second favorite super-hero TV series.

After that first episode, I realized I had never read the original comic book source material. Exhibiting not the slightest modicum of restraint, I immediately ordered Stargirl by Geoff Johns [DC Comics; $34.99], which collects stories from Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. #0-14, JSA: All Stars #4, DCU Heroes Secret Files (1999) and DCU Villains Secret Files (1999). I started reading the trade paperback the day it arrived.

The Stargirl series doesn’t exactly adapt these early Geoff Johns comic books, but it has their spirit and it does honor to all the characters who made the move to TV. With rare exceptions, I’m not a fan of super-hero comic books of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Yet these comics, drawn by Lee Moder and others, were entertaining and much fun. Johns’ love for the Justice Society and other bits of DC continuity came shining through. This comes from a writer (me) who’d happily take a sledgehammer to eight decades of ever-changing DC Universe continuity. If the core values of the characters are there, I don't sweat the details.

The bottom line? The TV series is better than the original comics. But this collection of those original comics gets my recommendation for being heartfelt, honest and satisfying. I’ve already read much of Geoff’s other comics writing, but, you know, I do believe I want to reread all of it. That might be my 2021 “Terry Moore” project.

ISBN 978-1-4012-9712-1

                                                                                 

Even recognizing anthologies can be a very mixed bag, I very much enjoy collections filled with done-in-one short stories. That was the case with Tales Through the Marvel Universe [$24.99]. Here is what Amazon says about it:

To celebrate Marvel's 80th anniversary, take a tour through the decades with tales past and present! In the 1940s, the untold tale of Namor and the atom bomb! In the 1950s, Reed Richards and Victor Von Doom enter the space race! In the 1960s, Captain America takes a stand for civil rights! In the 1970s, Spider-Man experiences the new age of blockbuster cinema! In the 1980s, Nightcrawler witnesses the fall of the Berlin Wall! In the 1990s, Deadpool gets into the collectible market! In the 2000s, Iron Man faces a financial crisis! In the 2010s, Spider-Woman struggles with disinformation! Gorilla-Man swings into action, Moon Knight prowls the streets, a pivotal chapter in Venom's history, a new status quo for former Ghost Rider Danny Ketch, Korean hero White Fox -and much more!

The past stories are my favorites. Downright haunting are Namor by Greg Pal and Tomm Coker; Captain America by Andrew Aydin and Daniel Acuna and Spider-Woman by Ethan Sacks and Marco Castiello. As for the modern era stories, I give top marks to Gorilla-Man by David & Marie Lapham; Moon Knight by Benjamin Percy and Juan Ferreyra; Ghost Rider by Ed Brisson and Juan Frigeri and the odd U/Wolverine tale by Zac Thompson, Lonnie Nadler and Andre Lima Araujo. Most of the other tales are, at least, readable. A couple are lead-ins to larger stories and that’s annoying. Only two or three are sub-par. Not a bad way to spend an afternoon.

ISBN 978-1-302-91746-3

******************************
Let’s end this column on a more positive note. Despite decades of disrespect from the comics industry, I’m fairly secure in my place in it. Because I know the impact my writing has had on readers from all over the world.

One of those readers sent me a book to be signed. With the book, he also included this note:

From Jim Henson, I learned the value of purposeful whimsy.

From Gene Roddenberry, that idealism existed.

From Richard Scarry, I learned to look beyond face value.

From Carl Sagan, that all disciplines connect.

You were my earliest guide in a quest for self and justice.

Let me correct my earlier comment. I don’t stand alone. Because so many of my readers stand with me.

I’ll be back soon with more stuff.

© 2020 Tony Isabella

MY PANDEMIC DREAM SHELTER

Time flies when you’re sheltering in place. Two months ago, I was oddly excited by a news story about a man who was caught camping in an abandoned island attraction at Walt Disney World. According to USA Today, Richard McGuire, 42, of Mobile, Alabama, was arrested April 30 after camping on Walt Disney World's Discovery Island. The man was banned from all Disney properties and charged with trespassing.

My burning question at the moment was:

If I could shelter in place at any deserted building, location or store, what would be that place?

I tossed the question to my legion of Facebook friends. Other than Walt Disney World, which would totally be a choice if McGuire had not done it first, where would you like to shelter in place?

Before I get to my response and those of my friends, let me share what I learned about McGuire’s idyllic island retreat. It was not the Discovery Island most recently opened to park visitors. It was originally known as Treasure Island and was closed to the public in 1999. It boggles my mind that any part of Walt Disney World could have remained vacant for two decades.
                                                                                   

The original Discovery Island was an 11-acre zoo which let guests see exotic wildlife in a kinda sorta natural setting. Many of those critters would move to Animal Kingdom, which had its grand opening on Earth Day 1998.

Other uses for Discovery Island were batted around, including one that would have re-imagined it as a series of puzzles to be solved while visitors went exploring on it. I picture a huge escape room thing. Of course, perverse sod that I am, I’d have added skeletons of a captain, a second mate, a millionaire, his wife, a movie star and others.
                                                                               

An USA Today article revealed that others had visited the original Discovery Island and photographed parts of the deserted attraction. When I saw the sign, I was immediately reminded of Jurassic Park. Oh, hell, add some raptors to the skeletons.

Moving on to my dream pandemic shelter...
                                                                                 

I chose the AMC 25 theater complex on 42nd Street in Times Square. Six stories of screening rooms. Incredibly comfortable seating that you could easily fall asleep on. A snack bar on every floor. Clean restrooms.

Of course, in my pandemic fantasy, every one of those 25 screening rooms is showing a different movie I wanted to see. There are only a few other people sheltering there, so social distancing was not remotely a problem. The snack bars were full of food and, somehow, the restrooms were cleaned by unknown persons.

My Facebook friends had other ideas.

Bookstores and libraries were popular choices. Among those named: Leakey's Bookstore in Inverness, Scotland; the Library of Congress; the central branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia; The Strand bookstore in NYC; Powell's Books in Portland; the Disney Archives; the DC Comics library; the Barnes & Noble in Willow Grove PA, which has its own Starbucks; and Charles Rozanski's or Buddy Saunders' warehouses. Because of the way my mind works, I kept imagining poor Burgess Meredith from that episode of The Twilight Zone.
                                                                             

Costco was another popular choice. Probably the smartest one given that the place has food, booze, clothes, books, games, electronics, furniture and about everything I could imagine needing for months of self-isolation.

Several amusement parks, luxury hotels, museums, resorts, secluded beaches and distant woods were named. If it was still around, and if I weren’t married, The Playboy Mansion (suggested by Clayton A. Moore) might have been on my list. 

Some more unusual choices:

The base of Christ the Redeemer (Mark B. Kirschner).
                                                                           

The Winchester from Shaun of the Dead (Eric Sweetwood).

Buontalenti Grotto in Florence (Mary Cohen).

“Pinewood Toronto high up on my candidates list right now,” posted Dwight E Williams. “Those Discovery sound stages...”

 

Mitch Tart: “Universal Monsters World. If it was open yet.”                                                                            

                                                                
My pal Arne Starr suggested The Hall of Justice. I liked that one a lot. However, the Batcave is probably the best stocked pandemic refuge. Before DC Comics murdered him, Alfred probably froze all of the gourmet meals he cooked for Batman that went uneaten because, you know, the Batman.

Area 51 (Mike Holton). If we promised to let them go, the aliens we are keeping prisoner there could use their advance science to whip up a vaccine for us.

Winchester Mystery House (Andrew Getting)

Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park (Catherine Yronwode).
                                                                               

                                                                      
The Rock of Eternity (Cynthia Finnegan). I like lightning as much as the next guy, but that and the frankly scary decor would scratch that from my list.

Ed Broderick stuck me as somewhat nostalgic for “the old farmhouse where I lived in a Hippie commune in 1970.”

The Wildfire lab from The Andromeda Strain (Drew Bittner).
                                                                           

Doc Savage's Fortress of Solitude (John Petty). Probably not very accommodating for someone like me, but I’d probably return from it smarter and in great physical shape.

One of my favorites was from Mark McConnell. “Gilligan's Island. I just need to make a coconut powered satellite modem.”

A great many of the responders stressed that, wherever they went, “no people” was a priority. I get that. On the other hand, even a grumpy old man like me likes company occasionally. I would suggest comely cosplayers, but, again, I remind you (and me) I am married. Additionally, I am old AF.

I hope you enjoyed this exercise in fantasy sheltering. Feel free to add more suggestions in the comments section. In the meantime, stay safe (mask, social distancing, wash your freaking hands) and stay sane. I send good thoughts to you.

I’ll be back soon with more stuff.

© 2020 Tony Isabella

FROM THE FILE CABINETS

I’ve been slowly going through my bursting file cabinets in search of both files that can be tossed and files that contain cool stuff I can share with my bloggy thing readers. Here are recent discoveries...

Back in the good old days of the newsprint weekly Comics Buyer’s Guide, when I had the time, means and inclination to read hundreds of comics every month, I wrote a column called “Tony’s Tips!” I have been writing that column in one form or another for something like three decades now.

One of the most popular installments was my annual “Top 40" listing of the top forty comic-book series or graphic novels of the preceding year. In my rankings for 1991, Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo claimed second place. If I could remember what came in first, I would share that information with you. I don’t. I’m old.

Stan was overjoyed to have been placed so high on the list. Which is why he sent me the above drawing and a very nice letter. Since the letter also had an original drawing, I’m going to see if I can put a good scan of said missive right about here:
                                                                                      

Usagi Yojimbo is still one of my favorite comic books. I have been rereading the series in those big fat collections from Dark Horse Comics and Fantagraphics Books. Those took me through the Dark Horse issue #158. Since it appears there will be no more of those hefty trade paperbacks from Dark Horse - IDW is now publishing the title - I plan to start getting the small trades that collect issues #159 and beyond. You can’t read too much Usagi Yojimbo.

                                                                                

Bob Ingersoll and I were and probably are still honorary members of the USS LaGrange, a spiffy starship of the Federation. They never beamed us up to the ship, but did invite us to be guests at their first LaGrangeCon in 1990. Since we had written Star Trek comics, we were kind of sort of second-tier celebrities. Indeed, they even asked us to conduct the opening ceremonies at the beginning of the first day of the event.

Mostly winging it, Bob and I actually managed to do a good job for the convention. The audience was excited, though probably more in anticipation of the arrival of Guest of Honor Patrick Stewart. But our jokes landed well, the fans liked us and we were entirely adequate to the task set before us. There was only one small problem that we had to deal with.

Through no fault of his own, Stewart was late. There had been some delays in his flights. It took him an ungodly length of time to get to the convention. We vamped until he arrived, but the only thing I remember about that part of the day was the panic that the audience would turn on us.

When Stewart arrived, he hadn’t eaten in quite a while and looked tired. The convention organizers offered to postpone his talk and his signing - he would be signing for free - until after he’d eaten and rested. Stewart declined.

Stewart said it wasn’t the fault of the waiting fans that his plane was delayed. He wouldn’t disappoint them. He talked for a while and then began signing. The organizers offered to give him a break to do the afore-mentioned eating and resting. In a manner that would have made Captain Picard proud, he pointed to the fan at the end of the line and said:

“When that gentleman back there has his signed photo, that’s when I’ll take a break.”

Right then and there, I’d have followed him into the very bowels of the Borg Empire. My captain, my captain.

Sometime during the convention, Stewart signed photos for each and every member of the crew who had put on the convention. Including his hopelessly outclassed opening act.
                                                                                 

 
Signed by Curt Swan, this copy of Superman #156 [October 1962] is one of my most prized possessions. Swab’s autograph made an already special comic book even more so.

Written by Edmond Hamilton with art by Swan (pencils) and George Klein (inks), “The Last Days of Superman” is my favorite Superman story of the Silver Age. Featuring literally dozens of supporting characters, it’s an epic in 24 pages. If DC did the story today, it would probably take a dozen issues plus another dozen “red skies” tie-in comics.

Superman appears to have been contaminated with Virus X, a lethal Kryptonian pathogen. He has one month to live and is determined to spend his final days accomplishing great feats he had put off for too long. His health comes and goes during this time. To accomplish his tasks, he calls on his friends.

In this story, we see the nobility of Superman. We see how much he means to his friends and the world. And, with what may be his last burst of energy, he uses his heat vision to carve an inspirational message onto the surface of the moon:

Do good to others and every man can be a Superman.

 

That clear message probably has as much to do with how I try to live my life has anything else I’ve ever read in my life.

Since there was a Superman #157, you can probably figure out that Superman didn’t die in this issue. How he survives is a brilliant plot development. It made for a satisfying ending.

There’s another reason this comic book is so precious to me. Near the end of his life, Curt Swan and I became convention friends. He was drinking too much those days. No matter my own circumstances, I usually managed to take him out for a good meal somewhere during the convention. We talked a little bit about comics and those were not always happy conversations. We talked about art and conventions and storytelling. I think I was a safe zone for him, just as I’ve tried to be one for other folks at conventions. I won’t tell you I knew him well, but I knew he liked me and I liked him. He remains one of my favorite comics artists.

Comics can be a tough road for creators, especially older creators who are ignored or unknown by the younger generations who followed them. It can also be a tough road for creators of color, LGBTQ+ creators and women creators. The predator culture in comics and so many other areas of our lives is a dire concern to all of those and to those of us who would be their allies.

Do good to others and every man can be a Superman.

 

 It’s a good message. I supplement it with one of my own:

Justice, like lightning, should always appear, to some men hope and to other men fear. 

 

Predators and those who enable them should face consequences for their actions. As we have seen in recent weeks, there are few consequences for the enablers. Without those consequences, there cannot be true justice for the victims of the predators.

Stan Sakai. Patrick Stewart. Curt Swan.

Good people all.

We need more like them.

I’ll be back soon with more stuff.

© 2020 Tony Isabella

FAMOUS FIRST EDITION: NEW FUN #1

The history of DC Comics begins with New Fun #1 [February 1935]. Cover touted as “The Big Comic Magazine,” the 10" by 15" launch issue was 36 pages (including covers) and was published by National Allied Publications, Inc. The president of the company was former career soldier and pulp magazine writer Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson and the editor was Lloyd Jacquet. The official name of the company changed to National Periodical Publications, but DC Comics was the name most knew it by and that name would become official in the 1970s.

Earlier this year, DC Comics reprinted the issue (with additional historical material) as Famous First Edition: New Fun #1 C-63. The very reasonable price for the handsome hardcover volume was $19.99. Worth every penny and more.

Fascinated by this “artifact,” I’ll be taking my time writing about it. If this means my comments will exceed this single bloggy, then so be it. Let’s start with the credits/indicia page.

Two of the names in the credits as no longer with DC Comics. Gone are Pat McCallum (Executive Editor) and Dan Didio (Publisher). The latter is still writing a 12-issue Metal Men series, but he may be done with that at this writing. Given the purchase of Warner Bros by AT&T and the comics industry slowdown that came with the Covid-19 pandemic, other names in the credits may not be there for long. Despite my own unhappy experiences with DC Comics since the 1970s, I hate to see almost anyone in comics lose their jobs. Predators and the employees and management who enabled them are not included in that.

Reading the small print, I came across this line:

DC Comics does not read or accept unsolicited submissions of ideas, stories or artwork.

This is why you’re unlikely to see new Tony Isabella stories from DC in the foreseeable future. It’s been two years since I was asked to pitch anything to DC and, even though these were things they’d asked for, there was never any serious interest in publishing more Black Lightning or anything else by me.

Getting back to this special hardcover edition...

An introduction by the late Jerry Bails precedes the actual comics reprint. Many consider Bails to be the “father of comics fandom” and I don’t quibble with that. His “The Start of Something Big” was written in 2000 for an earlier planned reprint of New Fun #1, but legal concerns torpedoed the project. It took two decades for DC’s lawyers to suss out that the company did have the right to reprint Oswald the Rabbit comics from the original publication.

A second introduction was written by Roy Thomas, legendary editor and writer. The high point of this intro is that it made me realize something I knew but didn’t impress itself on me until I read this piece. Editor Lloyd Jacquet was not only the editor of this first DC Comics release, but less than five years later, was the editor of Marvel Comics #1, the first Marvel Comics release.

Jacquet turns up in many comics history articles, most recently one which discussed his connection to a fly-by-night comics publishers of the mid-1940s. He might not be well-known, but, given he was all over the comics industry at its start, I’d buy a biography of him in a heartbeat.

The cover feature of New Fun #1 is “Jack Woods” by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson and artist Lyman Anderson. Twelve panels including a logo panel. Woods seems to be a wandering cowboy of the type common to comic books over the years. When he sees suspicious cattle driving, he ends up the prisoner of Don Nogales. He breaks free, but Miguel, assistant to Nogales, is about to throw a knife at him in the final panel of the strip. You can add your own “knife to a gunfight” quip if you so desire.

The inside front cover presents a stirring proclamation from “Fun the Fantastic,” the dwarf-like spokesperson of the comic magazine. He describes the variety that awaits readers, drafts those readers to be assistant editors and asks them to fill out a cut-out coupon listing their favorite features. A hundred readers will get tickets to their local movie theaters. If a reader writes a letter and it’s judged to be one of the ten best, they’ll get an original drawing from their favorite feature. I thought this was a terrific way to connect with the readers.
                                                                                

“Sandra of the Secret Service” is by Wheeler-Nicholson with Charles Flanders. Sandra seems to be quite well-off. She has a chauffeur named William and a butler named Haskins who, I suppose, could be fellow agents. Or maybe she hasn’t joined the Service yet. Perhaps she’s about to be recruited by the man who jumped into her car when  being pursued by people not hesitant to open fire on Sandra’s car. Flanders is best known for drawing the Secret Agent X-9 and Lone Ranger newspaper strips.

Sandra is not quite a full page. The GCD describes it as .84 of a page with the remaining .16 occupied by Oswald the Rabbit. Though this feature looks like a newspaper strip, it’s an original feature probably written by New Fun cartoon editor Sheldon Stark and drawn by John Lindermayer. Golden Age comic-book artist Lindermayer most likely drew several other New Fun features under various aliases. Stark is such a fascinating fellow that I feel compelled to borrow my friend Nicky Wheeler-Nicholson’s brief biography of him in this special recreation of New Fun #1:

Sheldon H. Stark, (1909-1997) cartoon editor for New Fun #1-2. Stark has been credited by some with the script for the “Oswald the Rabbit” strips and may have contributed to some other unattributed scripts. He was born in Brooklyn, New York to Russian emigrants. As classmates at both the Lincoln School and later Dartmouth, Stark became a close friend of Nelson Rockefeller.

Stark scripted two newspaper strips in the 1930’s, “Chip Collins Adventurer” and “Inspector Wade”, which was reprinted in comic book form in Magic Comics. He would also collaborate with Jerry Robinson on the “Jet Scott” daily strip that ran in The New York Herald Tribune from 1953-1955.

Stark was best known for a prodigious and long career as a writer of both radio (including “Green Hornet” and “The Lone Ranger”) and television (including “Studio One”, “Wagon Train,” “Batman”, “Green Hornet,” “The Man from UNCLE” and “Quincy”). His first play “Time of Storm”, which addressed the dangers of McCarthyism, won a 1954 Best of Season Award. Long active in industry issues, Stark helped form the Radio Writers Guild and later taught screenwriting at UCLA.

 

“Jigger and Ginger” was drawn by Adolph Shus, who would go on to be an illustrator for The New Yorker, Collier’s and other magazines of the period. Jigger is a college student. Ginger is his girlfriend. Jigger’s fraternity brothers try to block his date with his girl by grabbing him for initiation into their ranks. Jigger turns the tables on the guy who tried to beat his time with Ginger.
                                                                             

“Barry O’Neill” is next. Written by Wheeler-Nicholson, the feature  is based on the prose story "The Horror of Fang Gow" from Top-Notch Magazine (February 1933). O’Neill is an American playboy who, with French Intelligence officer Le Grand battles a Chinese cult-leader, alchemist, terrorist, and warlord called Fang Gow, the "inscrutable and vengeful enemy of the Human Race.”

The strip was drawn by Lawrence Lariar and his name is familiar to me because he appeared in the graphic novel Invisible Ink: My Mother’s Love Affair with a Famous Cartoonist by Bill Griffith, best known for creating Zippy the Pinhead. Lariar was also a prolific mystery writer, the cartoon editor of Liberty Magazine and Parade and a contributor to many leading magazines.

No one in this first appearance shows any actual personality beyond the typical “stalwart heroes” and “crackling fiends” roles. O’Neill would appear in New Fun, then More Fun and New Adventure Comics until early 1941.
                                                                                 

“The Magic Crystal of History” is by African-American writer/artist Adolphe Barreaux, arguably the first Black creator to have appeared in a comic book. He had a long and interesting career. He created “Sally the Sleuth,” who appeared in spicy pulp fiction magazines and had a penchant for losing her clothes in the pursuit of criminals. Barreaux ran a comics art shop, contributed to many comics and pulp magazines and was an editor at Trojan Magazine and at a branch of Fawcett Publications.

I got a kick out of “The Magic Crystal.” A pre-teen boy and girl, caught in a storm, enter a “haunted” house for shelter. When they see and approach a glowing crystal ball, the object gets larger and draws them in. They arrive in Egypt of 4000 BC. I was impressed the kids could pinpoint their position so precisely after two panels of the story. I’d like to see more of this strip.

This is where we end the first installment of our look at New Fun #1. I’ll return to this landmark issue next week. In the meantime, I’ll be back soon with other stuff.

© 2020 Tony Isabella

THINGS THAT MADE ME HAPPY IN JUNE

If ever there was a month where I needed to find the happy, it was June. What a shit show on almost every level.

I’m not sure a day went by without Russian agent Donald Trump doing something criminal, racist and vile. Even as Putin paid bounties to  the Taliban to kill American soldiers in Afghanistan. I can’t wrap my head around why anyone with even half a brain and half a heart would support the spray-tan super-villain.

We’re still living with the Covid-19 pandemic. Indeed, the failure of Trump and his vassal governors to trust the science and address the crisis competently has caused spikes in virtually every state that didn’t enact the proper safeguards. Yes, I know the economy is hurting. The real economy. Not the Wall Street fantasy lands of the rich. But the fastest way to a better economy is to keep Americans alive and healthy and able to use our ingenuity to overcome our difficulties.

I wish I could say I found comfort in our comic-book industry and  related things, but June was also a kick in the balls there. Turns out that the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund was covering up for, enabling and protecting predator Charles Brownstein for something like 15 years. Even to the point of forcing one of his victims to sign an NDA. At this time, only one of the several board members and officers responsible for the enabling has resigned. Worse, the big name comics creators who have supported the CBLDF have largely remained silent and not called for those board members and officers to be held accountable for their malfeasance. Truly, I have spent my life in an industry of moral cowards.

New information has been coming out about Eddie Berganza and other former and current DC Comics personnel. The continued employment and protection of such lowlifes has made it shockingly clear that, within its operations, DC has contained a predator culture. Again, the big-name creators who could push for real change at the company are largely silent.

As my bloggy readers know, I can either succumb to the depression that surrounds these unkind times or remind myself, every day, that there is still joy to be found in my world.

Here are the things that made me happy in June...

June 1: For about two hours this glorious sunny morning, running errands, I felt almost normal. Medina’s NY Bagel Deli was open; for the first time in months, I had a delicious warm bagel. I knew it would raise my blood sugar level, but I ate it anyway. Driving to the Sprint store, I opened my SUV window and blasted “Hot Hot Hot” (Buster Poindexter) along the way. My apologies to any neighbors I disturbed. The nice young lady at the Sprint store was able to fix my problem quickly. I went to PetSmart to get medicine for my cat,  watched a cute kitten while waiting. On the way home, I blasted the Ghostbusters theme. Again, my apologies to anyone I disturbed with my rude behavior. I needed those two hours before I girded my loins and got back into the fight.

June 2: Making decisions and feeling good about them.
                                                                            
June 3: Starting to organize my Vast Accumulation of DVDs. I have three bookcases set aside for this and hope they will be enough for the job. Oh, the suspense!
                                                                         

June 4: Daredevil Season Three. Four episodes in and, while it can be painful to see characters I like in turmoil, I’m enjoying this. I want to see the cast move to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They are all that good.

June 5: Stargirl by Geoff Johns and Lee Moder. Not as polished as Johns’ later work, but I enjoyed the heck out of this collection of the Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E series from 2000.

June 6: Gerry Conway. My friend, former colleague and co-creator of the Punisher is working on a fundraiser with the goal of reclaiming the Marvel character's iconic skull logo from police. He has both my respect and my support in this.
                                                                        

June 7: BLACK LIVES MATTER painted on the street leading to Trump Bunker. Every street on which Trump owns property should be painted in similar fashion.

June 8: A Facebook post by Steve Dooner: “I am endlessly happy when I know the person who told me stories about a heroic and principled Spider-Man and Black Lightning in my youth turned out to be heroic and a good person when I got to meet him up close.”

June 9: When a scene in a comic speaks volumes. In Rachel Rising by Terry Moore, Rachel goes to a home supply store to find a match for the rope marks on her neck. The clerk is an elderly black man whose grandfather was lynched. They hug. A brief moment of connection and peace amidst centuries of brutality.

June 10: I had a great time doing a definitely unfiltered podcast with the Spoiler Country crew. It’ll probably bring the haters out again, but it was fun. I’ll let you know when it’s posted online.

June 11: Life’s Little Victories. My DVDs and Blu-Rays have been sorted on three bookcases for the first time in a decade or more,  and with a shelf and a half to spare.

June 12: Last night’s Ohio Center for the Book online discussion of my Black Lightning: Cold Dead Hands was great fun. Huge thanks to host Valentino Zullo and the other participants.
                                                                             

June 13: My Godzilla Monopoly game has arrived. Now I just have to find family members who will play it with me. In the meantime, I’m training for the Godzilla Monopoly season opener.

June 14: Catwoman 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular: Tom King and Mikel Janin’s “Helena” contains the best Batman dialogue I’ve read in a long time: “I’ve got a Batbucket in the car. It’s just a...bucket with a...bat on it.”
                                                                              

June 15: Al Jaffee. This magnificient MAD man has been a wondrously hilarious part of my life since I was old enough to sneak MAD into my bedroom. He has retired, but his work will always remind me of the power of humor.

June 16: Saintly Wife Barb and I have been married for 36 years and counting. One cat, one house, two great kids, and, if such a thing is possible, too many books and movies.

June 17: TwoMorrows Publishing. The leading publisher of books and magazines about comics history and also nostalgic popular culture. Like many others, the Covid-19 pandemic has hurt them financially. Please support this vital publisher by going to their website and purchasing back issues, books and subscriptions.
                                                                                  

June 18: I’m closing the First Church of Godzilla Facebook page to make room for the KAIJU CATHEDRAL. The group is open to the public, but you have to be a member to post. Look for new content starting this afternoon.

June 19: Free delivery. I’m sane. People who go to stores without masks aren’t. Getting goods and supploes delivered for free reduces my risk of dying from their stupidity. It’s a win-win.

June 20: Spy x Family by Tatsuya Endo. A spy needs a family for his latest mission. His instant family includes an assassin and a young telepath. This is why I love manga.
                                                                                

June 21: Becky. An honestly chilling movie with a young girl taking on escaped convicts at a lake house. Incredible performances by 14-year-old Lulu Wilson as Becky and Kevin James as a murderous white supremacist. Highly recommended.

June 22: Guns Akimbo. Ridiculously fun movie about a computer nerd who finds himself in a streaming battle to the death with an insane young woman. Samara Weaving as Nix is outstanding. Daniel Radcliffe is crazy good. Recommended.

June 23: Alligator X. This 2014 movie is also known as Xtinction: Predator X and Jurassic Predator: Xtinction. I’d change my name, too. Not a good movie, but kinda fun. Mark Sheppard chews the swamp scenery as a mad scientist. The insane ending comes out of freaking nowhere.
                                                                                

June 24: Miss Meadows. This goofy little movie from 2014 starring Katie Holmes doesn’t manage to be a consistent dark comedy, but it has its moments. All I asked was a hour-and-a-half break from the world’s calamities and it gave me that.

June 25: The Dixie Chicks are changing their name to the Chicks, acknowledging criticism over their use of a nostalgic nickname for the Civil War-era South. Long overdue, maybe, but I give them props  for this.

June 26: Lady A, the first band to change its name to eliminate a nostalgia for the Civil War-era South. That said, I wish they would lose the “A” as well. Artists can change the world in music and all forms of entertainment.

June 27: UK publisher Rebellion’s collections of vintage British comics like Jinty and Invasion. I’m enjoying them and impressed at the various creators’ ability to tell these stories at three pages a week. I would love to do that someday.
                                                                                 

June 28: My Spy. Just released on Amazon Prime, it’s a fun, mostly family-friendly comedy with some good action sequence and a great cast that includes Dave Bautista, Chloe Coleman and Kristen Schaal. An enjoyable hour-and-a-half.

June 29: The Wooster Ohio school district is cutting participation in the annual Wayne County Fair if Confederate flag sales continue. I’m proud of them for taking a stand against racism and treason.
                                                                              

June 30: Santo Suossos Pizza Pasta Vino in Medina. Craving spaghetti and meatballs, I ordered take-out. Everything was delicious. Great entrees. Nice side salads. Amazing bread. With so many good things on the menu, I’ll be ordering again.

I hope you found joy in June and every day thereafter. I’ll be back soon with more stuff. 

© 2020 Tony Isabella