Tuesday, October 29, 2013

The Revolutionary War Wheel--Tomahawk 102-118 Writers

In "The Attack of the 'Gator God" Bill Finger reuses not only the War Wheel that he originated in Blackhawk 56 (Sept/52) at Quality; his heroes use pretty much the same method to defeat it (and Tomahawk's is a little more ingenious, as he leaves footprints over the trap).

Tomahawk 105 Smasher, Blackhawk 56 War Wheel

Most stories from Tomahawk 102 through 118 are drawn by Fred Ray, but for "The Attack of the 'Gator God" in #105 he only pencils; Bob Brown inks the story. Brown draws "Battle Hat" (#101), "The Frontier Frankenstein" (#103), and "The Ghost of Tomahawk" (#104) as well as the covers through #115. Irv Novick draws "The Mad Miser of Carlyle Castle" (#113).A letter column credits Jerry Grandenetti's pencils along with Joe Orlando's inks (credited for the only time in that combination that I'm aware of, after all the ghosting Grandenetti did for Orlando) on "Tomahawk: Guilty of Murder" (#118). Neal Adams draws the covers of #116-118.

The back-up stories not entered here are reprints; in "The League of Tomahawk Haters" in #113 (from #54), Dan Hunter has been minimally redrawn, recolored, and relettered into the young Ranger, Stovepipe.

Tomahawk 102-118
Writers (underlined=credited on story splash or in another issue's letters page)


J-F/66  #102  The Dragon Killers France Ed Herron
Bring Back a Prisoner—Alive Bill Finger
M-A/      #103  The Frontier Frankenstein Herron
The Super-Ranger with Nine Lives Herron
M-J/      #104  The Fearful Freak of Dunham's Dungeon Herron
Take Me Alive Finger
J-A/      #105  The Attack of the 'Gator God Finger
Hold That Bridge Herron
S-O/      #106  The Ghost of Tomahawk Herron
One-Man Fort Herron
N-D/      #107  The Tribe below the Earth Herron
Last Stand of the 3-in-1 Ranger Herron
J-F/67  #108  New Boss for the Rangers Herron
M-A/       #109  The Caveman Ranger Finger
The Toy Tiger Herron
M-J/      #110  Tomahawk Must Die Finger
J-A/      #111  Vengeance of the Devil-Dogs Herron
S-O/      #112  The Rangers vs. Tomahawk Finger
N-D/     #113  The Mad Miser of Carlyle Castle George Kashdan
J-F/68  #114  The Terrible Power of Chief Iron-Hands Carl Wessler

Traitor of the Totem Pole Finger
M-A/      #115  The Deadly Flaming Ranger Wessler
M-J/      #116  The Last Mile of Massacre Trail Wessler
The Making of a Hero Wessler
J-A/      #117 The Rangers' Last Stand Dave Wood & Murray   Boltinoff
The Gauntlet of Doom Wessler
S-O/      #118 Tomahawk: Guilty of Murder Kashdan
The Ranger Who Wouldn't Fight Herron

Splash page credits begin consistently with #119; the one story thereafter presented uncredited (drawn by Frank Thorne) is this one:

M-A/70  #127  Big Anvil's Big Lie Kashdan

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Woolfolk Records 1951/05

Doll Man 37 cover with Doll Girl

Fawcett, Quality, and Orbit, like clockwork, bought and published the stories William Woolfolk wrote this month.

He returns to writing Doll Man; in this story Martha Roberts (a supporting character since the first story) becomes Doll Girl, a role she'll play until the feature ends.

This is Woolfolk's final Wild Bill Pecos story as The Westerner reaches its final issue; it's published a page shorter than the script.

May 1951 Comic Book Scripts by William Woolfolk

6 pg  Ibis ghost ship in the Arctic
"Ibis and the Ghost Ship" Whiz 141, Jan/52
10  Doll Man meets the Doll Girl
"Battles the Skull" DM 37, Dec/51
10  Foodini Foodini's summer hi-jinks
"Foodini's Summer Hi-jinks" Pinhead and Foodini 3, Nov/51
Captain Marvel Jr. the master of space
"CMJ Battles the Spacemaster" CMJ 105, Jan/52
Captain Marvel Jr. the invisible guest
"CMJ and the Invisible Guest" CMJ 105, Jan/52
Murder Alibi alibi witness turns out to be blind
"Wanted by a Killer: One Witness" Wanted 42, Oct/51
10  Blackhawk men from the future
"Men from the Future" BH 47, Dec/51
10  The Beach Mob Miami Beach gangsters in Chicago
"The Beach Mob" Wanted 43, Nov/51
Captain Marvel Jr. Sivana Jr. buys Louisiana Territory
"CMJ and the History Hoax" CMJ 105, Jan/52
Blackhawk the sea monsters
"The Sea Monsters" BH 47, Dec/51
10  Wild Bill Pecos dead man's fort
9  "Dead Man's Fort" The Westerner 41, Dec/51

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Tomahawk 83-101 Writers

When Murray Boltinoff took over editing Tomahawk he changed the format from three stories per issue to a double-length one and a back-up (with #95 a full-lengther). #83, his first issue, introduces the "G.I.s of 1775," Tomahawk's Rangers, as supporting cast for the lead stories, but through #93 the back-ups still team Tomahawk with his original young partner Dan Hunter. The use of some fantastic elements carries over from Jack Schiff's stewardship.

Boltinoff didn't make any great change in the creative personnel; on this run the feature's mainstay artist Fred Ray drew all but one story, and one-time Tomahawk artist Bob Brown every cover, as well as the lead story in #98 and the backup in #101. Ed Herron and Dave Wood had been sharing the writing chores for a number of years under Schiff.

Tomahawk 86 page with gorilla King Colosso, sound effect Kwhamma

Boltinoff credits Herron, Ray, and letterer Stan Starkman every so often in the letters columns. The sure sign of Ed Herron's work in the Sixties is the sound effect Kwhamma; note the "a" at the end that the other DC writers at the time don't use. Some lettercol credits for Herron are for individual stories and some are general; he wrote most of this run, but not every single story before Bill Finger's first credit.

Tomahawk 83-101
Writers (underlined=credited on story or in letters page)


N-D/62 #83  20 against the Tribe France Ed   Herron
The Mighty Hand of Chief Great Storm Herron
J-F/63 #84  There's a Coward among the Rangers Herron
Miss Liberty's All-Girl Army Dave Wood
M-A/     #85  The Whispering War Herron
The Giant from Inside Earth Herron
M-J/     #86  The Rangers vs. King Colosso Herron
Lord Shilling—Yankee Ally Herron
J-A/     #87  The Secrets of Sgt. Witch Doctor Herron
The Tick Tock Terror Herron
S-O/     #88  The Rangers Who Held Back the Earth Herron
Miss Liberty Rides Again Herron
N-D/     #89  The Terrible Tree-Man Herron
Hold That Bridge Herron
J-F/64  #90  The Prisoner in the Pit Herron
Booby-Trap Town Herron
M-A/      #91  The Tribe below the Earth Herron
The Straw Soldiers of Devil Pass Herron
M-J/      #92  The Petrified Sentry of Peaceful Valley Herron
Target—Tomahawk Herron
J-A/      #93  The Return of King Colosso Herron
Dead Silence Herron
 S-O/      #94  Rip Van Ranger Herron
Heartbreak Hill Herron
N-D/      #95  The Tribe beneath the Sea Herron
J-F/65  #96  The Ranger Killers Herron
The Battle That Never Died Herron
M-A/      #97  The Prisoner behind the Bull's-Eye Herron
Coonskin Lottery Herron
 M-J/      #98  The Pied Piper Rangers Bill Finger
The Man in the Muzzle Herron
J-A/      #99  The Rangers vs. King Cobweb Herron
The Battle of Little Ben Finger
S-O/      #100  The Weird Water-Tomahawk Herron
The Ghost of Trigger Hill Finger
N-D/      #101  Tomahawk, Enemy Spy Herron
Battle Hat Finger

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Woolfolk Records 1951/04


Wanted 42
Fawcett, Orbit, and Quality, the three you'd expect, bought and published the stories William Woolfolk wrote this month.

Crime Lab is a recurring Wanted feature; this is Woolfolk's only installment.

Showing again how Woolfolk used the idea from an earlier story as a jumping-off point to get a script rolling: Captain Marvel Jr., fought a Zombie Master in a Woolfolk script back in Master 75 (Dec/46), written in August 1945; in very general outline this month's Ibis version follows the same plot—zombie master hiring out zombies—but it's a completely new script. In the same month he wrote a Super Rabbit story about a duplicator machine, but I've seen neither that story nor this month's second Pinhead and Foodini one. And Doll Man fought an Undertaker in Woolfolk stories before Wild Bill Pecos did.

UPDATE: darkmark found the Monte Hale story.

April 1951 Comic Book Scripts by William Woolfolk

7 pg  Captain Marvel Jr. queen of witches
"CMJ Battles the Queen of the Witches" CMJ 104, Dec/51
10  Foodini talking camel
"Foodini's Talking Camel" Pinhead and Foodini 4, Jan/52
12  Wild Bill Pecos meets the Undertaker
"WBP Meets the Undertaker" The Westerner 40, Oct/51
Monte Hale mystery of the three wills
"The Mystery of the Three Wills" Western Hero 110, Jan/52
This Way—to Death! underworld finger man—puts finger on himself
"This Way—to Death!" Wanted 41, Sept/51
Private Piney & Miss Fitt gag stuff
1  Private Piney "It Pays to Advertise" P & F 3, Nov/51
1  Little Miss Fitt "Be Prepared" P & F 3, Nov/51
10  Pinhead and Foodini machine that can duplicate anything
13  "Too Many Pinheads" P & F 3, Nov/51
Crime Lab murderer caught by fact French horn blows offkey when cold
"The Musical Murder" Wanted 41, Sept/51
Blackhawk invaders from Inferno
"Weird Invaders from Inferno" BH 47, Dec/51
12  The Real Story of Murder Inc. Abe Reles & his role in Murder Inc.
10  "Murder Inc." Wanted 42, Oct/51
Ibis the zombie master
"The Zombie Master" Whiz 140, Dec/51

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

More Mo Marcus at Dell

It took me three posts in a row (one, two, three) to come to a conclusion on the artist of Dell's The Monkees #1 (if by coming to a conclusion one means agreeing with Mark Evanier's identification of the artist.) It's Mo Marcus. Jerry Marcus later confirmed Mark's ID; Dick Giordano, the artist hired to do that issue, asked Jerry's father to pencil the job for him. José Delbo, of course, drew The Monkees from #2 on.

Who's Minding the Mint? (Aug/67) is Dell's Movie Classic one-shot adapting the film produced by comic book artist and Stooge-in-law Norm Maurer. Its art has been attributed to Delbo and then Henry Scapelli, but the pencils are by Mo Marcus; the skinny, angular limbs are the trademark seen in that first issue of The Monkees. (These are Jim Hutton and Walter Brennan, by the way; Marcus is able to capture their likenesses without the traced still-photo paste-ups that typefied Scarpelli's Dell tie-in work at this point).

Who's Minding the Mint

The writer escapes me so far. The inker is a question, too. Giordano and company (Sal Trapani and Frank McLaughlin)? On some pages I wonder if I see John Tartaglione's inkwork, but at Dell he pencilled much more often than he inked. The Mo Marcus art that I've seen signed at Charlton was inked by Rocco Mastroserio, so maybe I'm not recognizing Marcus's own inks here.