Adventures in Comic-Boxing: Unusual Early Use of Fethry Duck in the United States!

 

Here's an ad from WANTED: THE WORLD'S MOST DANGEROUS VILLAINS # 5 (DC Comics, Cover Date: January, 1973) that raised an eyebrow, when I first saw it this year!

Yes, that's REALLY Donald Duck's oddball cousin Fethry Duck in this ad!  

A unusual character selection for this 1973 ad, considering Fethry had only had THREE appearances in American Gold Key comic books - all in 1965-1966!  

I wonder if anyone knew who he was...  Much less why he and Donald were BLUE! 

Panels You Never Expected to See: "A Very Awkward Occurrence of Plague!"

I know we're not supposed to laugh at things like this anymore, but I can't help but point-out the "inadvertent funny" found in the opening splash panel of  JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #44 (DC Comic, Cover Date: May, 1966)!  

I'll just let the panel itself speak to this (presumably) unintended misstep...

...And quietly bow-out with what little remaining blogger-dignity I may still possess left intact!

Happy (?) Easter 2022!

I wish you all a Happier Easter than Sourpuss is having on the cover of TERRY-TOONS COMICS #21 (Timely/Marvel Comics, Cover Date: June, 1944).  

At the very least, may all your Easter Eggs be colorful and/or sweet tasting... and not (Gandy) Goose Eggs! 

Adventures in Comic-Boxing: Oswald's Full-Page Cross-Promotion!

While everybody loves Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, I'll bet few have thought of him in terms of a comic book pitchman... or "pitch-rabbit", if you will.  

But, take a gander at this ad from LOONEY TUNES AND MERRIE MELODIES COMICS #22 (Dell Comics, Cover Date: August, 1943), where Oswald steps up to plug his own Dell Comics title - NEW FUNNIES!  

The ad is on the inside back cover and, because of that positioning, note how Oswald presumes that you have just finished reading this issue of LOONEY TUNES, with a direct reference to "the adventures of Bugs Bunny and his pals", before making his pitch!  

We liked 'em just fine, Oswald!  In fact, they were GREAT!  

Oswald throws it to his NEW FUNNIES co-stars...

Then comes back for the clincher!

OH, MAN... I AM SOOOO THERE!  (...or I would have been if I were around in 1943!) 

Gotta love that early design on Woody Woodpecker!  

I guess Oswald was chosen for this, so he could do a "rabbit segue" from Bugs...

...Leaving me to wonder if Bugs ever took control of the inside back cover of an issue of NEW FUNNIES for similar purposes! 

After all, he CAN be a little "enthusiastic" at times...

For an ACTUAL example of a comic book subscription ad that Bugs invaded, look no further than HERE!  

You get the feeling that Oswald, at least, did it with the proper permissions!

 

That's All [New Funnies] Folks!

I’m Not an Artist, But… What's Outside the Iris-Out?

To paraphrase Star Trek's Doctor McCoy, I'm a WRITER, not an ARTIST! 

What that means is that I couldn't lay out an interesting comics page to save my life... 

...Not that such an inability has stopped others, I must point out!  

But, what it DOES mean is that I don't have an eye for creating interesting visuals... interesting dialogue, absolutely - but not interesting visuals!  

So, when I see one - even a rather inconsequential one, within the greater whole of the story - I very much appreciate it!  And such is the case in the story "The Master vs. the Pupil!" from BATMAN #34 (DC Comics, Cover Date: April-May, 1946 - Art by Dick Sprang), where Batman puts an overconfident Robin to the test in a game of (pardon) "Bat and Mouse"!  

A great story, with an unusual plot premise, but HERE'S something I really like about the art...

It's not just an "iris-out", but a CHIMNEY is placed OUTSIDE the iris-out!  Even if I *was* a competent artist, that's something I would never have the vision to do! 

Dick Sprang has long been considered one of the best of the long line of artists who have drawn Batman in the various eras - and (with the possible exception of Jerry Robinson) THE BEST of his particular era - and a tiny little detail like this shows why!    

...Okay, time for me to "iris-out"!