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Five Years Old and Still Truckin' Through the Groovy Age! PLUS: A Peek at The Groovy Agent's Pad!

July 28, 2013, 9:02 pm
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It's really been half a decade (as of yesterday) since Ol' Groove decided to start up a comicbook blog! I didn't really know what I was doing (as you can tell from the first few posts!), just breaking a (probably old) news about a classic 70s character (Warlord) making a comeback under his creator (Mike Grell). As the days went by, though, I started getting a feel for what the Diversions should be about, along with finding the "voice" of the Groovy Agent (I mean besides the Wolfman Jack/Casey Kasem/Dr. Johnny Fever mishmash in my head). "Departments" started coming to me, like Famous First Fridays, Black and White Wednesday (probably the most popular), and Grooviest Covers of All Time. Within a couple of weeks, folks started commenting, treating the Diversions like it was something worthwhile. Now, after over 1,600 posts, hundreds of followers, and nearly three million (!) page views, Diversions is part of a lot of folks' daily routines and a place for fans to go when they want info on a comic mag or character. It's a lot of work (especially considering the ground that's already been covered), but I love this blog and I really, really love my Groove-ophiles (fans and pros alike!). Every once in a while I think, "That's enough. What's left? Why keep this thing going?"--then I get an e-mail or comment from someone telling me how important the Diversions is to them or challenging me with a really cool request or question that fires me right back up again. So, what's Ol' Groove trying to say here?

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, GROOVE-OPHILES! You keep on visiting Groove City, and yers trooly will do his best to make it worth your time. Deal?

Meantime, how'd ya like to take a look at the Groovy Agent's recently remodeled pad? It's not completely finished, but it's preeeety close...


Yep, that's my original FOOM poster hanging by the closet door! The "pictures" I made myself, using scans of favorite panels (on the FOOM wall) and covers (on the Superman wall). Wanna see 'em a little closer up? Pics are taken using my phone, so they may not be the highest quality, but you can make 'em out...




Just for fun, anyone wanna try to pin down the panels I used in the FOOM wall pics?

Ol' Groove'll be back tomorrow with more comicbook stuff. See ya then!
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Random Reads: "Death Is My Dominion!" by Dorfman, Brown, and Anderson

July 29, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Hey, hey, hey, Groove-ophiles! Ya know, Superboy didn't spend the Groovy Age truckin' it to the future to hang out with the Legion of Super-Heroesall the time. Sometimes he just hung around Smallville battling it out with his ex-pal Lex Luthor. You know, like in Leo Dorfman, Bob Brown, and Murphy Anderson's "Death Is My Dominion!" from Superboy #179 (September 1971). Dig it!













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Black and White Wednesday: The Question by Stern, Uslan, and Toth

July 30, 2013, 9:02 pm
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What it is, Groove-ophiles! Today we're gonna plant our peepers on a rare treat--Alex Toth illustrating Steve Ditko's The Question from Charlton Bullseye #5 (Summer 1976). The untitled story, plotted by Roger Stern and scripted by Michael Uslan, no matter how good it may be, is only an excuse for us to admire the artistic prowess of a true master of the medium. How did the CPL Gang (Bullseye's publisher) manage to snag Alex Toth for their fanzine? In an interview with John Cooke in Comic Book Artist #12, CPL editor Roger Stern answered that very...er...question...

"Dumb luck, I guess. Somehow, we'd gotten Toth's address and sent him a complimentary copy of CPL. Then, we managed to get him to draw a cover for issue # 11. When Bob (Layton) launched Charlton Bullseye, one of the things we both really wanted to do was run a new Question story—and since we weren't sure how to get in touch with Steve Ditko, we hit on the idea of asking Toth. I think Bob called him. Anyway, Toth said yes."

 Dumb luck rocks, dunnit? Check it out!








 
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Groove's Faves: "Summer Fun--and Summer Not" by Doyle, Lucey, and Epp

July 31, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Greetings, Groove-ophiles! You guys seemed to have really dug our last Archie I post, so Ol' Groove decided to share another fave with ya, this one from Archie #220 (cover-dated August 1972). Again by my Archie dream team of Frank Doyle and Harry Lucey (with inker Marty Epp), "Summer Fun--and Summer Not" has Veronica I "inventing" the summer season, tanning on the beach, and class divisions, while Reggie I tries to profit from it all. It's fun in the prehistoric sun, baby!






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Making a Splash: John Buscema's Fantastic Four Part One

August 1, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Big John Buscema. Hands down, one of the giants of Marvel Comics' Groovy Age. Most of us remember his Avengers and Conan as masterpieces of comicbook art, and that they are. Mr. B. also handled the art on Fantastic Four for a sizable chunk of the Groovy Age. Here are the splashes from his FF debut on ish 107 (November 1970) through double-size ish #116 (August 1971). Most are inked by FF mainstay Joltin' Joe Sinnott, who is, in Ol' Groove's opinion, THE FF inker of all time, so yeah, what you're about to see is mind-bogglingly gorgeous! Ready! Set! Go!!














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R.I.P. Dear Ol' Dad

August 3, 2013, 6:40 pm
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Greetings, Groove-ophiles. Just stopping in for a moment to let you know Ol' Groove will be taking most--or all--of this week off to take care of family matters. Dear Ol' Dad passed away this morning (8/3/13), so I'm going to be very busy for the next few days. I hope to get things going on schedule again by the end of this week or the first of the next. Until then, please check out this short but heartfelt post from Father's Day 2009 dedicated to Dear Ol' Dad. He was and is my hero.

Pax

Ol' Groove
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Easing Back In...

August 9, 2013, 3:58 am
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 Greetings, Groove-ophiles!

Ol' Groove just wants to thank all of you for the prayers, good thoughts, and encouraging words this past week. It's meant so, so much. The family and I are doing fine. There's a chunk of heart missing, but we know where it is, and we'll let the memories fill it.

Meantime, new posts on the Diversions starting Monday. I hope/plan to keep the five day a week schedule.

Also, tomorrow (Saturday, 8/10) I have a guest-post going up on the Longbox Project( http://thelongboxproject.com/ ); it's kind of the first chapter in the "origin" of the Groovy Agent. Please check it out tomorrow!

Again, thanks for all the love and thanks for sticking by Ol' Groove during this trying time. I hope ya dig my post at the Longbox Project tomorrow, and we'll get the party rolling again on Monday.

Pax!
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Groove's Faves: "Panic in the Dream Stream" by Fleisher and Kirby

August 11, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Greetings, Groove-ophiles! Man, they don't make comics like this anymore--but I wish they would! Silly, fun, outrageous, imaginative, whimsical, original, and not one iota of self-consciousness or pretentiousness.  Writer Michael Fleisher (notice the misspelling on page one? Sheesh!) set out to make Sandman the polar opposite of his better known assignments, the moody and violent Spectre and the anti-social Jonah Hex. In fact, in the letters page of this particular ish, Fleisher describes Sandman as showing is "friendly, loving side" and calls the characters "zany" and "loveable". That attitude, plus the artistic return of Sandman's co-creator, Jack "King" Kirby truly makes "Panic in the Dream Stream" from Sandman #4 (May 1975) a fave!



















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Tuesday Team-up: "...Then Came Ramrod!" by Gerber and Heck

August 12, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Hey, hey, hey, Groove-opiles! Who but Steve (Baby) Gerber could take a dull plot, a ridiculous villain, and some far-out coincidences (and I know some of you are adding "Don Heck art" to that list, but hey, I think Heck's art is energetic enough to be downright fun) and still create an enjoyable team-up between Daredevil and the Black Widow and Spider-Man? The charm, for moi, lies in Gerber's dialogue. The narration (what a narrative voice that man had!), the snappy patter, the masterful (and purposeful) use of comicbook villain cliches...Yeah, that's some good stuff! From Daredevil and the Black Widow #103 (June 1973) here's "...Then Came Ramrod!" (Interior inks by Sal Trapini, cover inks by John Romita, Sr.)




















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Black and White Wednesday: "The Hyborian Age Chapter 6: The Darknes...and the Dawn" by Thomas and Simonson

August 13, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Hey, hey, hey, Groove-ophiles! Are you ready for the fearsome final chapter of Roy Thomas and Walt Simonson's adaptation of Robert E. Howard's "The Hyborian Age"? Well, ready or not, from the pages of Savage Sword of Conan #17 (January 1977), here comes "The Darkness...and the Dawn"!







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Groove's Faves: "Kongzilla!" by Robbins and Evans

August 14, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Check it out, Groove-ophiles! Sick humor from DC's PLOP! #1 (June 1973). It's one of those stories that's so obvious that you can't figure out why you never thought of it yourself, but done up with such enthusiasm and panache that you can't help but enjoy it. Of course, what else would you expect from two old pros like Frank Robbins and George Evans? Run for the hills! Here comes..."Kongzilla!"





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The Grooviest Covers of All Time: Gold Key's Lone Ranger

August 15, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Ya know, Groove-ophiles, when I was a Li'l Groove, Gold Key/Western Publishing's painted covers really turned me off. They looked like magazines, not comicbooks, ya know? Now, by the time I hit my teens, painted covers (and comics) were lookin' pretty far out to me, but in between there was one title that I rather dug the painted covers on: The Lone Ranger. For some reason, painted covers seemed natural for Kemosabe. Maybe it was because guys like Ernest Nordli, Hank Hartman, and Don Spaulding did such a cool, cool job of making the Lone Ranger, Silver, Tonto and the Old West look real...






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Shades of Gray: "Two Worlds to Win!" by Effinger and Morrow

August 18, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Hey, hey, hey, Groove-ophiles! Here at last is the final installment of Marvel's Gullivar Jones adaptation in Creatures on the Loose! Written by George Alec Effinger with art by (but of course!) Gray Morrow, "Two Worlds to Win!" was originally published in COTL #21 (October 1972). And just 'cause Ol' Groove loves ya, baby, I'm tossin' in Steranko's sensational cover aaaaand COTL #21's editorial with the lowdown on all the talent involved in bringing us Gully's color comicbook adventures! Who says this isn't the Groovy Age of goin' the extra mile?












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Groovy Age Gold: "The Origin of Dr. Fate" by Fox and Sherman

August 19, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Greetings, Groove-ophiles! Ol' Groove has mentioned many times and often how much he digs Dr. Fate, like in this Secret Origins featuring Dr. Fate post, so I thought now might be a good time to take a look back at the good doctor's actual origin story from More Fun Comics #67 (cover-dated May 1941), reprinted in Justice League of America #95 (November 1971). Hope it's a good time for you!







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Black and White Wednesday: "The Pest!" by Hewetson and Corben

August 20, 2013, 9:02 pm
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HowOOOO's it' goin', Groove-ophiles? Today's black and white monsterpiece was first seen (shambling through) Warren's Eerie #33 (March 1971). Written by "Archaic" Al Hewetson (before he got his "Horror-Mood" gig at Skywald) with art by the great Richard Corben, "The Pest" is gonna grab ya, baby! Dig it!!








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Groove's Faves: "Children of Doom" by O'Neil and Boyette

August 21, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Greetings, Groove-ophiles! Today we're going to take a look back at Denny O'Neil (writing as Sergius O'Shaugnessy) and Pat Boyette's Children of Doom. Charlton's publishers and editory Dick Giordano must have had a lot of faith in O'Neil and Boyette's dark futuristic fable as evidenced not only by the "A Charlton Classic" blurb on the splash page, but by the fact that they allowed our creative team to experiment with black and white art in a color comic. Today we're not phased by artistic experimentation, but in 1967 Charlton's powers-that-were took a huge risk. While sales might not have set the world on fire, Charlton Premiere #2 (cover-dated November 1967) is well-remembered and highly regarded by fans of classic comics. If you've never seen it, you're probably about to become a fan, too!


























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The Grooviest Covers of All Time: Herb Trimpe Made Me Buy These!

August 22, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Hey, hey, hey, Groove-ophiles! Happy Herb Trimpe is one of the Groovy Age greats, and that's a fact. His over-half decade tenure on the Incredible Hulk clinched that, for sure, not to mention his work on Godzilla,Ant-Man (in Marvel Feature) and tons of other cool stuff. You may (or may not) remember that Herb turned out some truly bodacious covers for Mighty Marvel during the late 60s/early 70s, so Ol' Groove's gonna lay a bunch upon ya right now, just so ya know I ain't jivin' ya. Enjoy!








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Groove's Faves: Marvel Treasury Edition #7 featuring the Mighty Avengers

August 25, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Happy birthday to moi, happy birthday to meeeeeeeee! Yeah, Ol' Groove's gettin' older today, hitting the big five-oh, just like my all-time faves, the Mighty Avengers! (Okay, they're not turning fifty today, but they did this year, so ya know what I mean!) Yeah, this creaky old bod might have a half-century's worth of mileage on it, but at heart, I'm still Young Groove, diggin' on all things comicbook, and especially Marvel's Mightiest Heroes. What better way to celebrate my big birthday than to go back to my twelfth birthday when I got the coolest, biggest, mightiest Avengers present of all--Marvel Treasury Edition #7?

I remember finding that one, lone copy of MTE #7 at the Rite-Aid drug store in nearby Corbin, KY, the day before my birthday in 1975. There was no way, I mean NO WAY I was leaving that store without it. I had twenty-birthday bucks burning a hole in my pocket, so bye-bye buck fifty (plus nine cents tax), hello tabloid-sized John Buscema art! (Complete with poster-sized Jack Kirby covers. Wonder why Big John didn't draw the covers?)


Two of the stories presented between those cardstock covers were brand new to Young Groove, the other two were old faves, but looking soooooooo much more spectacular in that tabloid size.

First up was "Death Calls for the Arch-Heroes!" from Avengers #52. I'd never read this classic in which the Black Panther joined the Earth's Mightiest Heroes--after being set up for murdering Goliath, Hawkeye, and the Wasp by The Grim Reaper (in his debut appearance, no less).

"Behold the Vision!" from Avengers #57 was also a newie for yers trooly. For a time, Vizh was probably my favorite Assembler, so finally getting to read his debut/origin story was worth the whole dollar-fifty (plus tax) in itself!

Avengers #60, in which "Til Death Do Us Part!" was originally published, was the oldest issue of Avengers in my collection at that time. I'd read my copy til it was literally falling apart, so I was tickled to get to read it in the majestic tabloid size. Man, Big John B.'s full pager featuring all those Marvel heroes just chilling before Wasp and Yellowjacket's wedding was a sight to behold!


The final story in MTE #7, "Come On In...the Revolution's Fine!" from Avengers #83 was also a long-time part of my collection, but it was high on my list of all-time fave Avengers stories at that time (why not? In introduced Valkyrie and Big John was inked by Tom Palmer!). The double page splash featuring all of those lovely super-heroines was mind-boggling newspaper sized!


Great stories by Roy Thomas. Fab-a-mundo art by Big John Buscema, plus the Kirby covers and an "Avengers Assemble!" pin-up by John's younger brother and master-Avengers-artist-in-his-own-right Sal Buscema, made MTE #7 (and my twelfth birthday) super-duper special!

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Bring on the Back-Ups: "The Last Duty!" by O'Neil and Craig

August 26, 2013, 9:02 pm
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One of the best things about DC's Dollar Comics format was that it allowed the editors of those extra-sized comic mags to try a variety of content. One of the things editor Paul Levitz used for back-ups in Detective Comics was Tales of Gotham City. Gotham was as much a character in Batman's universe as any side-kick or villain, so these Batman-less slice of life stories were always a treat. Today's example, "The Last Duty!" written by Denny O'Neil and illustrated by EC Comics luminary Johnny Craig from Detective Comics #488 (November 1979) is absolutely one of the best of this sometimes back-up series. See what ya think, Groove-ophiles!








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Black and White Wednesday: "Kirby Speaks" and More from FOOM Magazine #11

August 27, 2013, 9:02 pm
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Greetings, Groove-ophiles! As most of ya know, today would have been Jolly Jack Kirby's 96th birthday. To celebrate, we're looking back at the excitement that surrounded The King's return to Marvel Comics in 1975. From the late 50s to 1970, Jack helped create not only the foundations but the stars of the Marvel Universe. When he left Marvel for DC in 1970, Marveldom and fandom were both left breathless. Jack's tenure at DC was filled with ups and downs, but his return to Marvel was a true cause for celebration. Here's how Marvel handled that celebration in their very own fanzine, FOOM Magazine #11 (Fall 1975)...
Cover art by John Byrne and Joe Sinnott









 The "Origin" of King Kirby by Charley Parker


Blue art by Paty (Cockrum), red art by The King
Happy birthday, Jack! The cosmos are yours!!
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