Thursday, April 18, 2019

Jack Oleck's Western Oeuvre

Jack Oleck did all of one Western story for DC that I can think of, and it was a weird Western. EC had long given up on Westerns by the time he worked for them, and so far I haven't run across any such stories by him at Atlas.

As he was writing weird, crime, and romance for Prize, he did have two distinct blocks of issues on their Prize Western--and almost all on series. In fact, he wrote all of the Preacher and Jeff Baker stories and created the Drifter as well, although I don't think he wrote all of that series' stories.

PRize Western 84 Lynch Law

Oleck's style is most distinctive when he philosophizes in captions in addition to the standard description, as in the first one in the story proper of "Lynch Law." He uses "In the end, __" and "Almost, __" often. To corroborate myself on some of these stories I did look further into his exclamations and sound effects.

Prize Comics Western

Written by Jack Oleck


Jul-Aug/50 82  The Preacher
Death Draws a Circle [NON-FICTION]
Sep-Oct/     83  The Danger Trail [PREACHER]
Nov-Dec/     84  Lynch Law [PREACHER]
Jan-Feb/51  85  Dead Man's Gold [PREACHER]
Mar-Apr/      86  War Party [JEFF BAKER]
    
Range War [PREACHER]
May-Jun/      87  Vengeance Trail [JEFF BAKER]
    
The Preacher Goes Home
Jul-Aug/      88  Ambush! [JEFF BAKER]
    
Double Trouble [PREACHER]
Sep-Oct/      89  Trouble in Lost Valley [JEFF BAKER]
    
Death on the River [PREACHER]
Nov-Dec/     90  Six Gun Law [PREACHER]
Mar-Apr/52  92  Buffalo Stampede [JEFF BAKER]
Nov-Dec/55  114  American Eagle Meets the Maverick
  
The Drifter
American Eagle Discovers a Secret Weapon
Jan-Feb/56    115  Bad Medicine [AMERICAN EAGLE]
  
The Drifter Uncovers the Brand of the Outlaw
American Eagle Arranges a Duel
Sep-Oct/       118  Liberty Belle [AMERICAN EAGLE]
Nov-Dec/      119  American Eagle Battles a Fanged Fury
  
The Drifter Stirs Up a Hornet's Nest of Lies, Loot and Lead