Reknowned cartoon historian, author and all-around nice guy Jerry Beck is up front this morning with yet another Walt Kelly post. This one’s from Jerry’s always informative and interesting CARTOON BREW blog and features a reprint of CILLY GOOSE, one of two odd 1945 ANIMAL COMICS stories Kelly drew for Dell as tie-ins to the Famous Studios animated properties.

http://www.cartoonbrew.com/comics/walt-kelly-famous-studios-cilly-goose.html

Over at my place, I link to an absolutely fascinating (well, to cartoon and comics historians anyway) video of CHICAGO TRIBUNE cartoonists at work and play in 1931.

http://booksteveslibrary.blogspot.com/2010/01/chicago-tribune-cartoonists-1931.html

Roy Crane, creator of WASH TUBBS, CAPTAIN EASY and BUZ SAWYER, gets a nice write-up at Bhob Stewart’s POTRZEBIE, complete with a link to a 1961 interview.

http://potrzebie.blogspot.com/2010/01/roy-crane-interviewed.html

I really enjoy the writing of Bruce Jones but I can’t for the life of me figure out this story from CREEPY. That said, here’s an interesting comparison of the printed pages and the original artwork by the great Russ Heath.

http://blacknwhiteandredallover.blogspot.com/2010/01/post-21-process-of-elimination.html

That’ a beautiful refrigerator-it’s a Tappan Model #5937 with the auto-matic ice maker, I believe!

Pappy speculates on what might have went down when National inadvertantly(?) stole Magazine Enterprises’ hit western character, THE GHOST RIDER to be the villain in a 1952 issue of JIMMY WAKELY(with art by a young Gil Kane).

http://pappysgoldenage.blogspot.com/2010/01/number-666-phantom-brander-i-wonder-how.html

Cartoonist Howie Post returns with a story of “Doodles Duck and his Toyland Playmates” done up in a Walt Kelly style complete with an Albertesque Alligator.

http://cartoonsnap.blogspot.com/2010/01/doodles-duck-by-howie-post-vintage.html

For a look at the real thing, here’s Albert with POGO in not one but two stories from the 1950′s comic book version of Walt Kelly’s venerable and genuinely hilarious series.

http://www.bigblogcomics.com/2010/01/pogo-possum-lil-green-robin-hood-and.html

Finally today, classic Good Girl Artist (and pioneering African-American comics artist) Matt Baker serves up mostly beefcake in the 1945 debut tale of VOODAH from CROWN COMICS.

http://comicbookcatacombs.blogspot.com/2010/01/introducing-voodah-golfing-mccombs-1945.html

Ghostly Weird Stories # 120 in September 1953 brought us this comic “The Garden of Horror” the likes that will never be on the Home and Garden network! It’s signed by Lee Loeb.

Is there anything cooler than shrunken heads? NOTHING unless you count the QUEEN of shrunken heads! Fantastic #9 from April 1952 brings us this tale published by Youthful Publications. Let’s face it Old Fart Publications would never print such a juicy comic story!

Bob Kane, the creator with Bill Finger of Batman does Peter Pupp! Wacky funny animal story but cool how the panel layouts, villain, shadows and shading kinda remind you of the early Batman’s had more Kane and less assistants taking over. I like him doing funny stuff-sweet Kane. From Bobby Comics #1, May 1946.

It’s been said that the Batman TV show was the greatest pop culture phenomenon of our time and it made a record-breaking impact on American music. It was said by me. (I thought I recognized my voice!) It’s hard not to sound like a broken record (horrors!) but when one is the official curator of the nexus of music and comics as am I, one can’t ignore Batman and the wealth of music he has inspired, can one?

The Batman Theme has to be one of the simplest hit tunes ever written, and certainly one of the simplest lyrics. “Batman. Batman. Batman. Batman.” That’s it! Unless you count “na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na.” And yet, this unassuming handful of chords was recorded by dozens of musicians and was incredibly successful on the charts. It continues to be covered by new artists to this very day!

Today I present a track from that first wave of Batmania, dating back to 1966.

With the crest of the wave already past, surf music was well on the wane. So surf pioneers Jan & Dean jumped on the Batwagon to release an entire ALBUM of Batacular tunes including their spiffy cover of the TV show theme.

You can hear this Bat-masterpiece just by clicking the link below!

Batman Theme - Jan & Dean

From MOVIE COMICS # 1, here’s an adaptation of the film BIG TOWN with Eisneresque layouts by artist Bob Lubbers (perhaps best known for his newspaper strips like ROBIN MALONE and LONG SAM).

http://tencentdreams.blogspot.com/2010/01/bob-lubbers-movie-comics.html

Here’s an interesting and amusing examination of the Golden Age Superman’s detective skills…or lack of same, complete with accompanying GA art samples.

http://slaymonstrobot.blogspot.com/2010/01/why-superman-didnt-star-in-detective.html

SEQUENTIAL CRUSH follows up on an earlier linked post with a summarization of Marvel’s early seventies flop-cum-cult favorite, NIGHT NURSE, complete with art by the great Win Mortimer.

http://sequentialcrush.blogspot.com/2010/01/unlikely-romance-night-nurse-2.html

Often mentioned when one lists the worst comic book heroes of all time, Dell’s mid-sixties FRANKENSTEIN by Tony Tallarico is here with the first of two posts reprinting the how-in-the-hell-did-it-get-that-far fourth issue.

http://magiccarpetburn.blogspot.com/2010/01/dell-frankenstein-4-return-of-mr-freek.html

Over at my place, BOOKSTEVE’S LIBRARY, we unearthed a 3 page 1950 bio-comic of Lucille Ball from National/DC, oddly enough published just BEFORE her biggest triumphs in I LOVE LUCY!

http://booksteveslibrary.blogspot.com/2010/01/lucille-ball-comic-strip-bio-1950.html

The world’s most famous Gauls, ASTERIX & OBELIX, demonstrate an old New Year’s custom in this colorful 1967 2 pager by the strip’s creators, Rene Goscinny and Albert Uderzo.

http://comicrazys.com/2010/01/09/for-gaul-lang-syne-asterix-1967-albert-uderzo/

You all know we love Sheldon Mayer whose humor work at DC appeared for more than 40 years. Here, though, is a rare straight sci-fi tale from SM from an issue of UNEXPECTED in 1981.

http://pappysgoldenage.blogspot.com/2010/01/number-664-dear-senator.html

In 1953, Atlas Comics (formerly Timely and later Marvel) attempted a too soon revival of their flagship characters, CAPTAIN AMERICA, THE HUMAN TORCH and THE SUB-MARINER. In 1969 they reprinted these post Golden but pre-Silver Age stories as seen here.

http://hairygreeneyeball2.blogspot.com/2010/01/return-of-timely-heroes.html

The normally jovial Gilligan over at RETROSPACE takes a real-world look at the 1951 self-help comic book, IF AN A BOMB FALLS and concludes that, contrary to what the book says, if an A Bomb falls, we are all toast!

http://my-retrospace.blogspot.com/2010/01/ten-cent-education-4-if-a-bomb-falls.html

By coincidence (?), TEN CENT DREAMS reprints that whole comic, IF AN A BOMB FALLS and includes the follow-up. THE H BOMB AND YOU for more pointless, placating suggestions on how not to get sizzled.

http://tencentdreams.blogspot.com/2010/01/saturday-matinee-ahhhhhhh.html

From real word horrors to more traditional ones, over at THE HORRORS OF IT ALL, we find the creepy story, “The Murderous Mimics” from a 1950′s issue of BEWARE and credited to artist Paul Cooper, a gentleman whose work I don’t recall ever having seen before.

http://thehorrorsofitall.blogspot.com/2010/01/murderous-mimics.html

Finally, today, the horrors of war. Unlike DC’s traditional Kubert and Kubert-esque war stories, here’s the late, great Alfredo Alcala from a 1974 issue of WEIRD WAR TALES with insanely detailed art on John Albano’s “The Bird of Death.”

http://www.comicbookwar.com/2010/01/weird-war-tales-bird-of-death.html