Wild Bill Everett's 1960s and 1970s Westerns

This time out I’ll continue to showcase Bill Everett’s western stories for Marvel, beginning in 1960 (to read a thorough examination of Everett's Romance art for Timely-Atlas, and much more, please go to Doc V's blog):

http://timely-atlas-comics.blogspot.com/2011/03/bill-everett-timely-romance-stories.html

Bill Everett worked in every genre for Timely/Atlas, including war, humor, jungle, romance, horror/mystery and, of course, westerns. Everett contributed stories and covers to titles like Western Outlaws, Quick-Trigger Western and Wyatt Earp. 

Everett's first 1960s' western was a five page filler in Kid Colt # 90, drawn, lettered and possibly written by him. Everett’s work at Marvel was sporadic in the early 1960s, as he was working at a greeting card company, but he returned in full force by 1966, working mainly on the superhero line, including stints on The Hulk, Dr. Strange and, of course, his baby, Sub-Mariner. Everett had a special affinity for the western genre, though, and produced his share of back-up stories in this period, as we shall see.

Character, body language and scenery set the mood in this Everett splash page, "Desperado!", Kid Colt, Outlaw # 90 May 1960

Dick Ayers pencils; Bill Everett inks, Two-Gun Kid # 81, May 1966

Everett's fist foray into Marvel's western stars begins with the Two-Gun Kid. Here  Everett teams with Dick Ayers, inking the cover and interior story (as Bill Roman, get it?).

Page 3 of "The Hidden Gun!" from Two-Gun Kid # 81. Steve Skeates plot; Larry Lieber story; Ayers/Everett artwork.  

Dick Ayers was certainly no slouch in the western department, producing some of his most accomplished work in the 1950s and early 1960s. Everett’s rendering adds another layer to Ayers’ pencils, much like John Severin did with Ayers on Sgt. Fury. It would be another seven years before the team was reunited on another western. 

"All in A Day's Work", Everett story and Art, Two-Gun Kid # 82, July 1966

Everett returned for a back up story in the next issue of Two-Gun Kid, and his solo work is breathtakingly beautiful. One can feel the dusty, muddy streets of the town. Everett again uses his ability to turn the sea into a vibrant element as the stagecoach falls into the ocean. Everett put plenty of effort into these vignettes and the results are rewarding.

 Page 5 of "The Passenger", Rawhide Kid # 54, Oct 1966. Denny O'Neil story, Don Heck pencils; Bill Everett inks (as "Willie Bee").

 

Bill Everett was an exceptional inker, and, like Wally Wood, added a gloss and depth to almost every penciller he worked over. Don Heck was another veteran western artist who was a standout in the genre, and the combination of the two produced fine results. The dialogue by Denny O’Neil in the final panel is a nod to the Bat Masterson TV show (and theme song) starring Gene Barry, which ran from 1958-1961 and lived on in re-runs for many years. The catchy theme song can be heard here:

:http://www.televisiontunes.com/Bat_Masterson.html

"Blazing Showdown", Sol Brodsky script; Tom Sutton pencils; Everett inks, Kid Colt, Outlaw  # 137 Nov 1967. Page 4. 

Newcomer Tom Sutton brought both cartoonishness and personality to the owlhoots pictured above, and his qualities meshed well with Everett. Sutton is another artist whose versatility and individuality is vastly underrated and deserves a post all his own. Although he was not often involved with superheroes or associated with one character, his diverse credits, including westerns, war, humor and horror, have proven him to be one of the most interesting artists of the period.

Page 4 of "Wild Bill Everett's" (as he was credited on the splash) written, drawn, lettered, perhaps even colored story - "The Medicine-Man or: The Parable of the Pitchman's Pitch". Two-Gun Kid # 91, Jan 1968.   

Everett turned in some of his finsest western art in these back-up stories appearing in the 1966/1968 period. He sense of mood and pacing shines through, and adds a pretty gal, to boot!

"Gunrunners' Trail!", Sol Brodsky script, Bill Everett art and lettering, Rawhide Kid # 65, Aug 1968. I suspect Brodsky named Texas Ranger Buck Maynard after early cowboy movie star Ken Maynard.  

While Everett's art was not up to the standards of his previous stories, he still turned in an exciting splash page.

"The...Double Cross!", Bill Everett art and letters; Everett script?; Rawhide Kid # 66, Oct 1968. 

Everett's final solo western story was likely written by him as well.( "Great Shades of Hades!" sounds like a line that wouldn't come from any other Marvel writer!). Everett turns in another effectively drawn tale. It's a shame there were not more opportunities for Everett to work in the genre. It almost happened according to info from On The Drawing Board # 71, Dec 68:

"The new 25 cent western title is being held up until they have 3 or 4 completed
issues on hand....The book will probably feature 5- ten page strips. The strips
should include the Ghost Rider; Half-Breed, a new strip; a somewhat changed
version of Bill Everett's Negro-Indian "Dark Arrow" strip; and two others..."

Later information had Arnold Drake attached to the script, who noted that Dark Arrow, or Half-Breed, was supposed to be about a Native American character. There apparently was talk of adding new material to Mighty Marvel Western but it was not until Western Gunfighters appeared in 1970 that any new material appeared in the 25 cent line. The Dark Arrow/Half-Breed concept may have been turned over to Steve Parkhouse and Barry Smith, morphiing into the one-shot Outcast that appeared in Western Gunfighters # 4. It would have been interesting to see Everett work on a new continuing character, but it was not to be.

There were no new Everett western covers or stories in 1969. Everett returned to the field in 1970 for the Outlaw Kid cover and story discussed in my last post. Everett returned to inking stories in 1971.

"Triple-Cross!" (Gunhawk) Allyn Brodsky script; Werner Roth pencils; Wild Bill inks-Western Gunfighters # 6, Sept 1971

  Bill Everett provides inks over Werner Roth in the Gunhawk feature. Gunhawk was a short lived western character that debuted in the anthology title Western Gunfighters and appeared from time to time in other strips. Like Don Heck, Werner Roth was very comfortable drawing  western stories, having produced quality work for Atlas on The Apache Kid and Matt Slade, along with numerous genre stories. At the time Roth was known for his superhero art on the X-Men, and compared to the overwhelming figures of Jack Kirby, John Buscema, John Romita and Gene Colan, Roth’s storytelling was often considered weaker and less dynamic. Roth was a solid storyteller and here his work shines combined with Everett’s precise inking. Roth also produced exciting work on a few Kid Colt and Rawhide Kid stories, especially those inked by Herb Trimpe.

Gil Kane pencils/Everett inks; Rawhide Kid # 96. Feb 1972

Rawhide Kid # 96 includes a double dose of Everett magic. Inking Gil Kane’s dynamic cover, one wishes they had drawn some interior western stories together. Kane was another in a long line of artists who had a true feel for westerns, and whenever he was inked by Everett, mainly on covers, the combination was exceptional.

Everett teamed up with Dick Ayers one more time, inking the Gary Freidrich written story “The Kid From Misouri”.

Larry Lieber pencils; Everett inks, Rawhide Kid # 97, March 1972

                    Larry Lieber pencils; Rawhide Kid # 98, April 1972

Everett inked three consecutive Rawhide Kid covers, the latter two rendering Larry Lieber’s pencils, who had been drawing and often writing the character for years. Everett never inked Lieber on any interior stories, which is unfortunate, as Everett would have added another dimension to Lieber’s pencils.    

And so ends Everett’s western run at Marvel. Sadly, Everett died in 1973, but his singular talent continues to live on, as fresh and exciting as ever, waiting to be explored, celebrated and appreciated.    

  

Hidden Gems Part 2: Herb Trimpe and Bill Everett

In my last post I displayed some new material pin-ups that appeared in Marvel's reprint titles. While going through my Marvel reprints (and indexing them for the GCD) I came upon another oddity, this time in a western comic.

Outlaw Kid # 2, Oct 1970. Herb Trimpe pencils; Bill Everett inks

The Outlaw Kid was one of a number of Marvel westerns of the period. Others included the Ringo Kid, Mighty Marvel Western, Kid Colt, Two-Gun Kid, Rawhide Kid and Western Gunfighters, the latter two were the only titles then including new material (Rawhide Kid, like Sgt. Fury, then included new material every other issue. Obviously using reprints was a cost savings). At this point Marvel was reprinting a chunk of its Timely-Atlas product, not only in the westerns, but also in Where Monsters Dwell, Where Creatures Roam, L'il Kids, Our Love Story and My Love (which also featured new stories).

While going through my western reprint collection I came across a curiosity: a 2 page Outlaw Kid story that I was "certain" was pencilled and inked by Bill Everett. Doug Wildey was the primary artist on the Outlaw Kid stories of the 1950s, but Everett was also working for Atlas in the 1950s and my first inclination was to think this was a reprint from that era.    

  "One of the Outlaw Kid's Fastest Gunfights!" Herb Trimpe pencils? Or Bill Everett? Bill Everett inks (and story?), Artie Simek letters.

The page count was odd in itself. Most 1950s stories ran 4, 5 or 6 pages, with occasional 3 pagers, but this story was only two pages. The job number was also strange. The upper left side of page 1, panel one has the number 407-Z. I'm not an expert on job numbers, which were used in the production process of comics, but I do know they began with a letter first, then a three digit number, as in the reprinted Outlaw Kid story in this issue, "The Newcomers!" F-678.

My next step was to turn to my good friend Michael J. Vassallo, an expert on Timely-Atlas lore. I explained what I had found and he replied there was no such job number used in that period. He agreed it must be a new story. I sent him a scan and he confirmed that it was not a reprint.

Did I discover an unknown Everett story? The art very much resembled Everett's contemporary work. I checked on the GCD and they had Herb Trimpe credited as artist. Although I could clearly see Trimpe's figurework on the cover (which Everett also inked) I didn't detect anything that pointed to his pencils in the interior story. Everett was a very distinctive inker, but usually something noticable about the penciller remained. In this case I couldn't pick anything out. Jim Salicrup believed that Trimpe drew the story, but I remained unconvinced. Jim contacted Trimpe directly and he responded that he DID pencil the story, but there are occasions where an artist does not always recognize his own work. Trimpe was a busy artist in that period, drawing many covers and stories, so its possible he has made an error. My instinct still yells "Solo Everett", but there is no real way of knowing.    

Further research proved that production numbers were used in this period, beginning with April 1970 cover dated issues and apprently ending with Nov 1973 cover dated comics. They were not always seen on the splash pages, likely for the same reasons they did not always appear in the past - they were covered up by art or lettering. Examples concurrent with the Outlaw Kid story include Captain America # 130 (340-Z); Silver Surfer # 18 (342-Z); "Did I Make the Wrong Choice?" from My Love # 7 (362-Z); Amazing Spider-Man # 89 (375-Z) and "Gargoyle Every Night" from Chamber of Darkness # 7 (377-Z). Need I add that these are all from original stories - reprints usually included the old job numbers on the printed comic.

So, why a new two page story in the Outlaw Kid? In this period Bill Everett was doing his share of inking at Marvel, especially over Marie Severin pencils*. The month Outlaw Kid # 2 was on the stands Everett inked the covers to Iron-Man # 30; Marvel Super-Heroes # 28 and Marvel Tales # 28. Everett was also probably coloring and writing the occasional script (on Sgt. Fury). so its entirely possibly that he produced a two-page filler for the Outlaw Kid. But Marvel could just as easily have filled those pages with in-house ads, so its still a mystery why new material was included. The only other place this could have been intended for was Western Gunfighters, a 25 cent title that featured a mix of new stories and reprints.

While the reason why this short story appeared in The Outlaw Kid # 2 may be lost to time, it remains another pleasant surprise hidden in the recesses of Marvel's reprint line. I hope I'll uncover more treats in the future.

With Thanks to Jim Salicrup.



*see my earlier blog of Marie Severin and Bill Everett for more info. Studious Nick        

Marvel's British Reprints

For those readers who don't get enough of my musings here (all three of you) I would like to direct you to one of my favorite Bloggers, a gentleman whose posts are often fascinating, illuminating and have a touch of melancholy for a time long gone.

"Kid" Robson was kind enough to allow me to write a Guest Blog, so I thought I'd reminisce about my discovery and interest in Marvel's UK line. I hope you'll pop over there and not only read my post, but wander around the many corners of the comics world that Kid writes about with great passion and enthusiasm. 

http://kidr77.blogspot.com/2013/01/discovering-marvel-uk-guest-post-by.html

More on Charlton

My last post on Charlton garnered a great deal of response, which surprised and pleased me. This time out I'll delve into the more neglected genres and show some examples of a few other Charlton alumni.

Jack Keller worked in the business for many years, early on as background artist for Will Eisner on his Spirit comic strip. Keller's art was spotlighted in Quality comics and became a prolific contributor to Stan Lee at Timely-Atlas on crime and horror stories, but is most recognized for his long and successful run on Kid Colt, Outlaw. Never a flashy artist, Keller had a straightforward style and could tell a story well. His rendition of Kid Colt was not musclebound but more of an average looking guy that readers could relate to. For Charlton he illustrated many western and war stories, but his biggest contribution was on their line of hot rod and car titles, many of which he both wrote and drew, often assisted by his son Gary as letterer. Keller was knowledgeable and enthusiastic over the material (he built model cars in his spare time). In later years he worked for a car dealership. Keller died in 2003.

Hot Rod Racers # 13, March 1967. Story and art by Jack Keller. Keller wrote and drew many of the popular racing features, including Rick Roberts, Clint Curtis and Ken King.

Keller cover art to Teenage Hotrodders # 21, December 1966. 

Along with Jack Keller, Dick Giordano provided many covers for Charlton's popular line-up of Hot Rod comics, although this may possibly be penciled by Pat Masulli. Hot Rods and Racing Cars # 68, March 1964.  This publication ran a healthy 120 issues, from 1951-1973.  

A mid-1960s house ad showcasing Charlton's line of car-related titles. This genre sold well with the general public for over two decades. 

Charlton produced all types of comics. This one starring a horse is interesting for a number of reasons. I doubt it was coincidental that NBC TV aired a show called Fury from 1955-1960, the story of "A horse and the boy who loved him." Black Fury also debuted in 1955, although there was no connection to the TV show. I guess no one at the network was aware of Charlton's comic. Cover by Maurice Whitman, from Black Fury # 16, Nov 1958  

"The Guardian", page 3, Ernie Hart art and possible script, from Black Fury # 18, April 1959

A number of talented artists worked on Black Fury, including Ernie Hart, who was a writer, artist and editor for Timely Comics working in the animation division. Hart may be known to some as "H.E. Huntley", a pseudonym he used while scripting early Marvel "Human Torch" and "Ant-Man" stories. 

While Steve Ditko is best known for his horror/mystery/science fiction stories at Charlton, he also dabbled in the "horse" category. This page is one of the best examples of Ditko's panel to panel choreography and his ability to ring emotion out of an animal, as illustrated in panel two. "The Silver-Tip Outlaw" included no humans in the story and was told in captions. Script likely by Joe Gill; lettering by Jon D'Agostino.  Rocky Lane's Black Jack # 27, May 1959.    

Rocky Lane's Black Jack # 21, January 1958, Maurice Whitman art. Another equine-centered comic was Black Fury, the horse of popular cowboy star Rocky Lane. In a few years Lane would trade places with his companion and become the anonymous VOICE of a horse on the 1961-66 comedy series Mr. Ed! (who said this blog has to only be about COMICS minutiae!) 

   

Pat Masulli was the Executive Editor of Charlton from 1955-1966, taking over from Al Fago. Masulli began at Charlton as a colorist, but also worked as an artist for a number of companies. Even when he was Executive Editor Masulli pencilled covers for Charlton, it's interesting to note that almost all the Charlton editors, including Al Fago (who drew Atomic Mouse), Pat Masulli, Sal Gentile, Dick Giordano and George Wildman, were also artists. Here Masulli is inked by Rocco Mastroserio. Outer Space # 18, August 1958.

Rookie Cop # 30, August 1956. Bill Molno pencils; Vince Alacia inks. 

Bill Molno pencils; Dick Giordano inks,  Robin Hood and his Merry Men # 38, August 1958.

Molno pencils; Sal Trapani inks, Jon D'Agostino lettering, "Kelly's Private War," Fightin' Army # 20,  May 1957.  

Although Bill Molno worked for various companies he was most prolific at  Charlton Press, where his quirky but distinctive art appeared throughout the line. You can learn (and view) much more of Molno's work on Lee Hartsfeld's informative blog: http://leescomicrack.blogspot.com/

Fightin' Army # 90, March 1970.  

Sam Glanzman started out in comics in 1939 and worked for a variety of publishers, including Centaur and Harvey. In the 1950s and 1960s he worked primarily for Dell and Charlton, pencilling movie adaptations, war stories and strips such as Kona. At Charlton he drew an unauthorized and short-lived Tarzan series and worked on Hercules. Glanzman was most closely associated with war stories and later wrote and drew a series of autobiographical stories for DC, "U.S.S. Stevens". With writer Willi Franz he drew the feature "The Lonely War of Captain Willy Schultz" in Fightin' Army for a number of years. 

Although Steve Ditko was often seen in Charlton's many ghost comics in the 1950s-1970s, he also worked in other genres from time to time. Here he lends his considerable talents to a war story. Page 2 of "Pied Piper of St. Pierre", possible Joe Gill script, from Fightin' Army # 89, Jan 1970.   

Dick Giordano drew everything at Charlton, including crime stories, romance, hot rods and westerns, and just about all the work was produced with solid craftsmanship. "The Most Desperate Man in Texas", Texas Rangers in Action # 8, July 1957    

Charles Nicholas and Vince Alascia on pencils and inks respectively teamed-up on countless Charlton stories, appearing in every genre with the possible exception of funny animals or cartoon characters (and I could be wrong there!). While their art was competent it often lacked dynamism, but they rose to the occasion from time to time and I've gained respect for their efforts. "The Professionals", Outlaws of the West # 81, May 1970. 

Billy the Kid # 114, September 1975

Warren Sattler illustrated many war, western and ghost stories for Charlton in the 1970s and worked on charcters such as Billy the Kid and Yang. Sattler had an attractive style, as can be seen by the above painted cover. 

A rare example of Steve Ditko on a western. Ditko's use of  body language and facial expressions is evident on this page, including an impressive silent panel. "Enemy Ground", Texas Rangers in Action # 77, April 1970.

Charlton had a huge line of romance comics and included many fine artists, including a young Jose Luis Garcia Lopez, who later went on to produce exceptional work for DC comics.  Cover from Love Diary #56, October 1968. Scan courtesy of Jacque Nodell who has educated me greatly on Romance comics through her blog Sequential Crush. You can read her thoughts on the cover story here:

  http://sequentialcrush.blogspot.dk/2010/05/of-all-romance-comic-books-i-bought.html

Jorge Badia Romero's cover for Time for Love #47, May 1976 from the collection of Jacque Nodell, who has displayed much wonderful art by the neglected Spanish artists on her site.  

Charlton comics ran a continuing story of David and Eileen, a couple in an interfaith marriage, an unusual idea that was probably not seen anywhere else in comics. "Heart-Ache Ahead" from Just Married #93, March 1973. Artwork by A. Martinez and J. Zuniga. Jacque has written a little about the series here:

http://sequentialcrush.blogspot.dk/2012/12/happy-hanukkah-from-charlton.html

Dick Giordano noted his involvement as editor in getting the talented Spanish artists for Charlton in an interview in Whizzard # 18, 1981:

"I made contact with a studio in South America and they were able to produce artwork at a fraction of the normal rate. Having discovered this, I went down to the publisher at the time and said, "rather than the company establishing rates I would like to dispense the money as I see fit as long as we remain within the established budget." I managed to save money a number of ways, partly by using the South American artists. Also, if you look closely you'll see that some of the covers are photostats of the inside art. I did that so I could pay Steve Ditko, Denny O'Neil and others a little more."      

Vince Colletta (aided by a studio of assistants) inked a prolific amount of work for Charlton, particularly on their many Romance comics. From 1959-1963 Joe Sinnott penciled many of Colletta's stories. The cover above consists of  scenes taken from an interior story, a technique employed by Charlton to save money. Romantic Secrets # 31, Feb 1961. Image from the Grand Comic Book Database. 

George Wildman took over the editorial post from Sal Gentile in 1971, with Nick Cuti assisting. Wildman also drew the Popeye comic book, which was written by Joe Gill (one of his favorite assignments). Wildman provided information for the fan press and was instrumental in notching up the quality of the Charlton line. This drawing appeared in The Charlton Bullseye # 2 

Wildman explained his editorial policies,  accomplishments and goals in this article from The Charlton Portfolio, 1974 

The Abbott and Costello comic book (which tied-in with a Hanna-Barbera cartoon) starred the famous comedy duo and included quite a few witty covers, such as the one pictured above, referencing one of Charlton's Hot-Rod comics. The interior story was likely scripted by Joe Gill, with art likely by the team of Bill Fraccio and Tony Tallarico. Early issues included witty scripts by Steve Skeates and art by Henry Scarpelli. Gill enjoyed working on humor, as did Steve Skeates,  Abbott and Costello # 14, April 1970. Image from the GCD. Information on possible Tallarico art per Mark Evanier. 

An example of Steve Skeates' offbeat humor, perhaps inspired by master cartoonist Harvey Kurtzman and his "Hey Look" strip. Art by Henry Scarpelli, Abbott and Costello # 2, May 1968.   

Talented artist Gray Morrow did some work for Charlton on their magazine line in the 1970s, as did Neal Adams, mainly on TV related fare such as the Six Million Dollar Man, Emergency and Space:1999. Cover from a stat of the first (magazine) issue, Space 1999 # 1, Nov 1975, as published in The Charlton Bullseye # 3.

In 1985 Charlton made one final attempt at a revival. This ad by Steve Ditko gave him an opportunity to draw characters he had never worked on before, including Yang, The Iron Corporal, Punchy the crow and Lil' Genius! Ad from Amazing Heroes # 82, 1985.

As noted in a news item that accompanied this drawing in The Comics Journal # 103, November 1985, Ditko's poster celebrating Charlton comics included some of the popular hosts such as Dr. Graves, The Mysterious Traveler and Winnie the Witch as well as his own creation, Static, of which he retained copyright. Unfortunately sales on the revived line were dismal and Charlton closed its doors for the final time. For 40 years Charlton had a diverse line of comics, with many hard working artists, writers and editors on their staff. I doubt we'll ever see its type again.    

 With thanks to Robin Snyder, Jacque Nodell and Mark Evanier.

Paul Reinman 1933 Drawing

Some time ago I was contacted by Gideon Remez asking for information about Paul Reinman's background. He discovered I had written an article on Reinman for Alter Ego some years ago and hoped I could assist him. I told him there were few Reinman interviews I was aware of, but Reinman wrote a brief memoir for Alter Ego in the early 1960s, which I passed onto him. In that same period I was over Timely-Atlas expert Michael Vassallo's house, and what does he have on his desk? A Paul Reinman interview that appeared in The Burroughs Bulletin # 13, 1962 (Reinman drew the Tarzan strip a number in 1949-1950). Serendipity! I asked Mike to pass on the info to Gideon, as well as information on Reinman's Atlas work, which he gladly did.

                           Reinman Tarzan strip, 1949. Image from Heritage Auctions.

Gideon is not a comics fan, but his interest in Reinman overlaps with my interest in the lives and history of creators, which extends to many areas, as the article will reveal.

      http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-arts-and-culture/116021/a-find-unlocks-comic-mystery

I've always found Reinman's work intriguing. I enjoyed his quirky qualities, his sometimes crude, imperfect figures figures and  that spoke of. Crude, perhaps, but with an underlying mood. His background work often overshadowed his figures, and this likely speaks to his primary interests. In the few paintings I've seen his backgrounds and scenery showcased strengths that were only touched upon in his comics work.

An attractive Reinman page that includes impressive rendering of buildings, trees, animals and figures. "The Temptation of Jesus", Bible Tales for Young Folk # 3,  December 1953 

Original artwork to Reinman's cover for The Shadow # 1, August 1964. His use of blacks and scratchy lines provides an atmospheric touch.

Much or Reinman's work outside of comics remains a mystery. It certainly includes undiscovered paintings and advertising art (a field he moved to after he left comics; he was also a courtroom artist), but could include book or record cover illustrations and movie posters, such as the one below. Further research into the work of Paul Reinman may open the door for a better assessment of him artistic talents.

                                

                     Reinman Bustin' Loose movie poster, circa 1981