| Author | Topic: Superman in the 70s |
| Aldous Member |
 posted February
08, 2002 04:13 PM 
quote:
I just went over and read the post. Thanks. Really interesting. How intriguing that he worked for the O.S.S.* Also very interesting to read how he did a sort of visual revamp of Lois Lane. Some of the old-timers had incredibly full and interesting careers. They had such enthusiasm and versatility! Their work had a really healthy dose of integrity.
IP: Logged |
| India
Ink Member |
posted February
08, 2002 04:40 PM
In the sixties I found that there were two Loises. One, often found in 80 Page Giants, was a plane Jane (this was the Wayne Boring model), while the other was darned cute. I never thought either was a stunning beauty, but Kurt's Lois was nice looking--the way you'd like your mother to look. It wasn't until the late seventies, when Kurt let her hair down, that I realized Lois was actually beautiful. And beautiful she was indeed in the seventies. In the sixties, when I didn't know much about comic artists, it confounded me that Lois would sometimes be nice looking and cute, and sometimes the class wallflower. It still confounds me why Boring drew her that way (Shuster didn't)--given that when Wayne drew Lyla Lerrol or Aphrodite/Venus or Lara, they were all stunningly beautiful and glamorous. IP: Logged |
| Aldous Member |
posted February
08, 2002 11:49 PM
Before adding a reply, I have to say I like Wayne Boring's art on Superman. I always think of Lois as being feisty and beautiful, and DEFINITELY sexy. Beautiful is not always sexy, but this woman is both. Of all the Superman artists from 1938 to 2002, my top pick is the Curt Swan-Murphy Anderson team, but that doesn't lessen my enjoyment of(or admiration for) the Swan-Bob Oksner team. I don't know about you, but Swan-Oksner produced the most gorgeous Lois. With Oksner on the payroll, Lois was a BABE. If you want me to name stories & issues, I can. (I might anyway... later.) As I understand it (I don't know where I read it), wasn't Bob a great practitioner of "Good Girl Art" before his work with Superman? It shows... I don't think Lois should ever be portrayed as dowdy or plain... she has an inner fire. We're talking here about a super-man with super-hormones. Would he be interested in someone plain who was merely annoying and nosey? I don't think so. IP: Logged |
| Aldous Member |
posted February
09, 2002 05:12 AM
quote: Yeah... Do you have the sexy story from Action #235 (1957)? "The Super-Prisoner of Amazon Island." Wayne Boring and Stan Kaye, artists. This may be an example of what you're talking about. This story is another favourite of mine. The amazons in the story are all very leggy, shapely and sexy. Wayne gave Lois a nice figure (I guess), but still managed to make her homely and dull-looking (the short hair doesn't help). I'll run through the story for anyone who's never seen it. Lois and a group of women become marooned on an uncharted island. The girls manage to get the ship's radio working and send out an S.O.S. They are then startled by the appearance of a group of scantily-clad women - the leader introduces herself to Lois and the girls as Elsha, Queen of the Amazons. Elsha boasts of a "land without men," and explains to Lois that the Amazons despise all men for being weaklings. She demonstrates her strength by throwing a spear clean through a tree trunk. Superman arrives not long after, and Elsha is shocked by the Man of Steel's feats of super-strength. Of course, it doesn't take her long to decide that Superman is the catch of a lifetime and begins scheming to make him her husband. (Maybe Lois can sympathise with Elsha...) The Amazons bring chains with which to enforce an Amazonian tribal law, that any man who trespasses on the island must become a slave. Superman is amused by this, but Lois warns him that the chains have a greenish glow. They're made from the metal of a Kryptonite meteor. Superman is about to beat a hasty retreat when he realises the Kryptonite is having no effect on him. He decides to allow them to chain him while he tries to figure out what is preventing the Kryptonite from affecting him. The Amazons hold an auction for the "super-slave". Lois outbids the Queen but Elsha tears up the Amazonian law and so invalidates the auction. But Superman is still not "free" because now the Queen presents another written law that basically means whichever woman can give Superman a task he is unable to perform must become his wife. One by one he uses his wits (and super-powers) to perform the tasks. Of the marooned women, only Lois (accidentally) is able to come up with a task Superman cannot carry out. Lois does not want to force Superman to have her, so she comes up with what she thinks is the easiest of the tests - but her test is, in fact, the toughest. She asks Superman what is behind a large rock (a single flower), thinking he will just look through the rock with his x-ray vision. Superman accepts the task, but finds the rock is composed of lead ore, rendering his super-vision useless. The Man of Steel admits he "can't see a thing" behind the rock. Lois pulls out the flower, confirming there's "not a thing" behind the rock, thereby releasing Superman from the trap. The Queen gives the final task to Superman. She orders him to make her a commoner, and Superman thinks, "How can I change her whole ancestry... or the royal blood in her veins?" Then he uses super-vision to read a tiny inscription on the Queen's crown: "Amazon Law: If crown is lost--or destroyed, the reigning queen loses her royalty." He destroys the crown with heat vision, making Elsha a commoner. But now he is shocked to find the Kryptonite weakens him, and realises with horror that the Queen's crown contained some rare substance that neutralised the Kryptonite. IP: Logged |
| India
Ink Member |
posted February
09, 2002 02:24 PM
Unless that story was reprinted in a Giant or a Super-Spec sometime after 1966, I don't think I've ever read it, though it sounds great--and I think I've seen mention of it before. In the Hercules story I talked about a while back, Lois poses for a photo shoot because the model didn't show up, and there for one panel she's dressed like some sort of moon goddess--and for that one panel, I can see Boring's Lois is every bit as beautiful as any of his other women, when she wants to be. Oksner drew some lovely women. And when he inked Swan he made Lois one of the most adorable women on the planet. Looking back at issues of Bob Hope and Jerry Lewis, I can always tell when Oksner was the artist by the women he draws. He might change other aspects of his art to suit the cartoonish or serious nature of the feature, but he always draws those adorable women. IP: Logged |
| KEV-EL Member |
posted February
09, 2002 03:40 PM 
This has been such a great thread it has got me going back and re-reading all my old 70’ s Superman and Action titles (I have them all!!!) I stumbled upon one of my favorite Superman stories of all times and wanted to share it with you… Action Comics #’s 385, 386, & 387 collectively known as “The Immortal Superman” The story asks this question: Superman is the most powerful being on Earth… But does that mean he will live longer than normal humans? Will he die after a hundred years? A thousand? No! The mighty Man of Steel will still be going strong a hundred thousand years from now! But will eternal life, with no fear of death be a blessing or a curse to: “The Immortal Superman!” In Action # 385 the Man of Steel is pictured sadly floating above the ruins of his Fortress of Solitude... It seems that in the year 101970, the Fortress has becoming something of a tourist attraction... And to add to the humiliation, admission is only 38 Donnals!!! Oh the shame!!! How did all this happen??? Our story opens with Superman summoned to the Oval Office for a meeting with the President of the United States... It seems that the Army is performing a secret ‘Vortex’ experiment and Superman must not fly into the past or future for the next 24 hours… No problem ehh??? Unfortunately, at that very moment, the burglar alarm at the Fortress goes off and the Man of Tomorrow is off to investigate… Upon his arrival, he finds a great machine from the future has written a molten note into the mighty door of the fortress: “Superman -- Your help urgently needed in year 101,970. Coordinates X78-543/20” Unwilling to break his promise to the President but unable to ignore a plea for help, Superman must find a way to answer the call for assistance from the far flung future… Luckily for Superman… “Some members of the Legion of Super Heroes from the 30th century had to scrap this damaged Time-Bubble the last time they paid me a visit! I wouldn’t take a chance with it normally – But this is an emergency”! Unfortunately, Superman doesn’t see the LARGE SIGN posted on the side of the Time-Bubble… There, in bold letters, is this warning: “OPERABLE BUT DEFECTIVE – SHOULD NOT BE USED! Doh!!! It seems that the Bubble won’t disrupt the Space Time Continuum as he would if he were breaking through the time barrier under his own power! So with little fanfare, he hops aboard the Time-Bubble, sets the coordinates, and is off!!! As the fantastic journey through time ends, Superman is met by horrifying gasps from the residents of the future!!! He is hardly recognizable! “ My face -- It feels Leathery -- Withered--Furrowed with a thousand wrinkles!” Great Krypton! Now I know the Time-Bubbles defect! While transporting me to the future --It caused me to age every year along the way! I’m over 100,000 years old! Luckily the folks who populate the future have had the foresight to have a “Strength Defier” handy... The “ultra rigid” bars are held in place by “Cosma-Magnetism”,the mightiest force in the Universe! “If you can pull them apart – you’re the Superman you always were!” “A mere exertion of powerful muscles proves the aged Man of Might is still the Super Strength champ of all time”… He Did it!!! Soon afterward… It seems that the emergency from the future involves a perplexing bank robbery... The cosmic Bank of the future holds over 50 Trillion dollars (using 20th century jargon) and someone, or something, has be stealing tons of currency. “How could anything be smuggled out of this room?” muses Superman... Especially given that the room is protected by “Pulsato-Energy” which dissolves anything within 2 feet!!! Superman is then introduced to three hero’s of the era who are now in a Para-Coma due to the effects of trying to thwart the currency thief… Ulp!!! But Superman rises to the occasion, with these powerful words: No, I won’t throw in the sponge, despite the risks! Lock me in! After several hours of boredom locked tight in the bank vault, Superman spies a “synthetic being spawned by the radiation of the Pulsato-Energy”… Surviving the first “devastating” shock given off by the creature, Superman finds safety in the powerful Pulsato-Energy fence where he has time to deduce the creature’s weakness… It seems the money is not being stolen at all… Its actually Lunch!!! Superman quickly notes that the creature is eating only the red, yellow and orange currency while ignoring the currency printed in the “cooler” colors of the spectrum… By painting the blue money with yellow dye, Superman tricks the creature into eating it thus poisoning itself!!! Brilliant!!! Soon after bidding adiou to the grateful bankers of the future, the Action Ace is headed back to his own time… “A few more seconds and I’ll be breaking the time barrier again… The machine defect should reverse itself and make me younger on the way back! But suddenly… Ooff!... Some kind of weird obstacle sealing off the time dimension! I’ll see if it can stop me if I fly through under my own power… But Superman’s nightmarish suspicions are confirmed… “Moons of Krypton! I was afraid of this – Whatever force has frozen the time barrier in impenetrable! Nothing can crack it – Including me! I hope this is only temporary…Otherwise I’m stranded in the future forever! Meantime, Ill zoom down and see what Earth is like in this 1,020th Century! Unseen by Superman is the floating presence of the man responsible for his dilemma… It is none other than the Time Trapper… “ Heh-heh… You’ll never see 1970 again, Superman… Because my Temporal Force Barrier will keep the past off limits until the day you die – No matter how many thousands of years it takes! The Fiend!!! Unfortunately for Superman, the future offers no welcome... The villains of this era have donned Superman costumes to perform their nefarious deeds!!! He tries to hide but is discovered by the “Multiple Men” who each have 25 Super powers!!! Using their superpowers of deduction they determine that he is in fact, the Original Man of Steel!!! “You’ve become a Legend in our era Superman… And we all idolize you! You were the greatest hero of all time! So each of us is honoring you with a gift!... Suddenly, Superman finds himself immerse in a green mist… “*Cough* I don’t exactly call these noxious gases “gifts” – They must have a Kryptonite base or they couldn’t effect me like this!” Feeling numb and groggy Superman attempts to leave but is soon overcome by the effects of the green fog… “Ohhh… My head! Where am I?” “You are in the observation pit! exclaims the Doctor! Our tests show you are the Real Superman of the 20th Century! And they showed a few more things that should surprise you! “Doctor --That’s Kryptonite! exclaims Superman as the Doctor throws a lasso of Green K over the Man of Tomorrow!!! “Exactly Superman! And the Action Ace suddenly finds himself bound by the deadly stuff that is poison to him… Or used to be… It seems that the “gifts” of the Multiple-Men not only cured Superman of his Kryptonite weakness, he is now also invulnerable to magic and Virus-X from his home planet, Krypton! Great Rao!!! This means I can never die… No force in the universe can harm me! My friends… Lois, Jimmy, Perry, Lana, Batman… All dead ages ago! But I can’t die! I’ll live forever… And I can never go home! So the aged Man of Steel is stranded in the future… Immune to injury, diseases and death… But not to loneliness and heartache! For the next chapter of Superman’s Time Odyssey, get the March issue of ACTION! (or ask me to continue… ------------------ I have (more than likely) been dispatched by Justin Peeler ® IP: Logged |
| India
Ink Member |
posted February
09, 2002 04:43 PM
cheers Kev-El. I'm glad that there are others who have the same enthusiasm as myself. Not to quash your review of this truly epic tale, please continue, but if you go through this this long long thread, you'll eventually find I also reviewed these same stories--and I didn't want you to feel embarassed, just because we happened to have reviewed a story we both love so much. But your description nicely dovetails with mine, filling in details I left out...and I feel glad all over that someone shares my enthusiasm. I am not alone in the universe, afterall.=> IP: Logged |
| Aldous Member |
posted February
09, 2002 04:47 PM
I've never seen this comic, Kev, but I wish I could read it.
quote: Pray continue... IP: Logged |
| Aldous Member |
posted February
09, 2002 05:00 PM
quote: Osgood, I went back and read this. The whole island setup reminded me a little of Easter Island, what with those mysterious statues and all... One thing I liked was how the air pressure on the island was immense (any ordinary human would be crushed instantly) in order to duplicate the pressures of the ocean floor from where the island had sprung. Superman was also callous and hasty in this episode, rushing in and smashing things up - only to find he was the nuisance. IP: Logged |
| KEV-EL Member |
posted February
09, 2002 07:59 PM
Thanks everyone!!! And yes India Ink, I should have known you would have touched on this
story… Aldous, you owe it to yourself to find these books! Its really a brilliant story and one that I like to point out to folks who think that all Pre-Crisis stories were nonsensical fluff… The next chapter in the Immortal Superman follows in Action# 386 The Home for Old Super-Heroes! More than 100,000 years in the future, crime has vanished… Wars are no more… Even accidents have become rare… So where does a Super-hero fit in? Who needs Superman in a Peaceful universe? No one apparently… So he’s sent to join other forgotten champions of the Glorious Past… The cover on this one alone is priceless with an elder Superman reliving his “Glory Days” with some of his aged fellow do-gooders in the “Old Hero’s Home” The splash page/Opening sequence of this one is a classic… We find the man of Steel idling away his time using his heat vision to “whittle these logs into statues of my long dead friends! Pictured is a sad and dejected Superman, alone with his thoughts,
putting the finishing touches on his Lois-Log… Superman now finds himself in Metropolis in the year 121,970… It is a world ruled by Prime Directive A – 7 and Superman quickly finds himself on the wrong side of the law… “ Halt Intruder! By command of the Violation Patrol!” “You have openly violated Prime Directive A-7!... The use of any Super-power in Metropolis is strictly forbidden!” But after the odd strangers arrest, we witness this exchange… “ The offender looks strangely familiar… Yes! I’ve seen someone like
him on Hist-Records!... Now what was his name?” Doh! After his re-introduction, Superman learns of the reasons behind Prime Directive A-7!.. “Thirty thousand years ago, three alien super champions settled on Earth and used their fabulous powers for all mankind… But soon savage jealousy arose over the female Nauron and her two suitor’s wage a terrible war with their lethal Proto vision! All earth was their battlefield… Their fighting lasted two days and then they declared a truce and left Earth… They were unharmed but the Proto-Energy created a poisonous layer of radiation that spread all over Earth! Even the Filtron Saucer couldn’t remove it… Hence the banning of all Superpowers… Of course, Superman understands and is set free with the warning to curb his Super powers or face the consequences… Wandering the streets of this future Metropolis Superman spots a spectacular sight! “[i]*Choke* The Daily Planet Building!... I can’t resist the temptation of going inside! A moment later inside, Superman is amazed! “ Great Galaxies! Advanced technology has accelerated the newspaper game to a Super-speed pace… The Planet has gone completely Video! The printed page must be ancient history in this era…” Selecting and inserting a tape dated 1970, Superman gazes into the viewer… "1970 was the year reporter Clark Kent vanished! Several months later, enough conclusive evidence was gathered to prove Kent was secretly Superman!" Several time tapes later Superman discovers what became of his friends… Lois Lane married a leading Hollywood actor who became famous playing Superman in Motion Pictures… Jimmy Olsen wrote a Best Seller about his years as Superman pal!... Perry White retired as editor and spent his last years in charge of the Superman Museum! Of course, the unrecognizable Superman still in costume, is quickly given the bums rush by security and is hustled out the front door... A moment later, outside… Superman witnesses a flying car, out of control and in danger, and true to his code, he sets out for a timely rescue doing what he does best… Only to be arrested again for his violation of Prime Directive A-7!... (Seems the out of control car had an “automatic de-solidifier”)... For his offense, Superman is exiled to the planet Diodn in a nearby solar system… This is the location of the famous Home for Old Super-Heroes! Upon his arrival on this new world, he is instantly recognized and hailed as “the Greatest Super-Hero of them all!” and is soon voted as the Leader… But this life is much too slow for the Man of Action and the thought of spending his time watching old tapes of his and his fellow hero’s past exploits proves too much… Soon Superman has galvanized the old boys into a team and extols them to prove to Earth that Super powers shouldn’t be taboo… “ Yes… yes he’s right”! “What he says makes sense!” “We’ll obey our leader”” Not long afterward, a fantastic migration enters the solar system – Earthbound… Superman quickly eliminates the “Super-Power Detector” with one blast of his heat vision… And moments later… There’s an emergency—it could wipe out our city any minute! In a nearby skyscraper is secretly stored the most powerful explosive element in the universe—Nutanium! Superman and his ages comrades face their impossible challenge… Superman rallies his tropes and sends them out to do their thing… Electro man uses his “Bolt Charge”… Atom King uses his “Projector Brain”… And the Green Lantern of his day uses his will power to overcome any and all obstacles… Only moment later the chain reaction takes place and the volatile Nutanium ignites!... But Metropolis gets a reprieve as the Man of Might blurs into action… And once again he saves the day!!!!! “All of us owe our lives to Superman! This proves that prime Directive A-7 is a foolish Law… I’ll see that Super powers are made legal again! Superman will be pleased when he returns! But he won’t return… The Metropolis Marvel is accelerating forward through the Time Barrier, even further into the distant future… All the while silently observed by the infamous Time-Trapper… “There’s nothing for me in this era now but regret! Why didn’t I marry Lois? I miss her so… Now she’s lost forever! All I can do is jump a few dozen centuries ahead.. maybe I’ll find happiness waiting there!” laments the despondent Man of Steel… What will the immortal Superman find at the next stop along the vast road of eternity? Has the Time Trapper erased the Man of Steels only hope of ever returning to 1970 and the Metropolis he knows? Rejoin the World’s Loneliest Hero in next months Action… (or ask me ------------------ I have (more than likely) been dispatched by Justin Peeler ® IP: Logged |
| Osgood
Peabody Member |
posted February
09, 2002 08:58 PM
KEV-EL, I also loved this story - especially the last chapter, which is very poignant.
Some of these covers put Lois in some awkward poses, to say the least
(being bound up in a bikini by mini-JLA clones, being the most extreme),
but she was always drop-dead gorgeous to boot! IP: Logged |
| Osgood
Peabody Member |
posted February
09, 2002 09:05 PM
quote:
IP: Logged |
| KEV-EL Member |
posted February
11, 2002 06:50 PM
Now for the conclusion... This 3 part story was truly something different when it came out in 1970… I think it really proves that the character is/was a viable creative concern and could provide wonderful, brilliant stories when in the right hands… Today, three issues would barely have us introduced to the main
characters A salute to the great artistic team of Swan/Anderson on this one… There
isn’t one panel where Superman bicep is larger than his head Not that I don’t enjoy today’s stuff, but this was state of the art in those days and I think its fair to say there was no one doing work of a higher caliber or of higher quality than the Swan/Anderson team… I wish I could salute the author of this tale but his (her?) name eludes me… Perhaps Aldous or India Ink could help me out with the answer to that one… On to Action Comics # 387… “I lived on after my home world of Krypton exploded… And now I’m still alive when Earth is a lifeless sphere! I’ve outlived two planets! So I’ll perform my last Super-deed and my greatest I’ll start by splitting Earth in two!” More than a million years old, the Man of Steel has lost all those he loved… For they belong to a past so remote it is scarcely remembered! Is he doomed to live on in a strange universe?… Or will we finally see the day when… “Even A Superman Dies!” Deep within the Milky Way galaxy a strange floating Train drifts through space… “Great suns! Five Spacemen–frozen in suspended animation…" Yes, it is Superman, but not the Man of Might we know from 1970, for this is the year 801,970 and Superman has aged every year!... I could defrost them with my heat vision but it’s been so boring in this blasted future era, I think I’ll revive them in a more dynamic way… The next moment Superman is hauling them towards the nearest star… “This would have thrilled me once, An eternity ago! But now even the most spectacular feats don’t give me a charge!” “I’m just tired of Doing my thing!” But even in 8001970 the legend of Superman lives on and he is recognized and quickly thanked by the wayward astronauts… He acknowledges them but moves on… As he cannot return to his era, the Action Ace has no choice but to stay on or move forward in time… “The past is off limits but the future keeps beckoning me to explore it! I’m on an eternal one-way treadmill!” And so he is off again, emerging One Million years ahead of 1970… “Blazes! What is this? I guess I should have expected this! After years of pollution, war, and untold abuses from Man – Earth has been used up! Its just a contaminated globe of waste material now!” And at that moment approaching from another direction… ‘{i]Moons of Krypton! The size of those monster robots staggers even my mind! They are carrying the earth like a giant basketball…[/i]” Yes friends, the Galactic Sanitation Department has sent a couple of garbage truck robots to dispose of what is left of out small blue planet! But Superman will have none of this and quickly dispatches the garbage touting dreadnaughts! But he has a plan… “Now to see if I can’t give Earth some new life –and a new look!” The Action Ace then proceeds to drill through the Earth again and again…5000 times a second and only moments later… “Just as I planned, My super speed drill pattern has split the planet open like an apple!” He soon has re-ignited the molten core and is off scouring the galaxy for “The right combination of gasses”… “It’s a bit of a strain… But my lungs are powerful enough to suck in this entire cloud and compress it under Super- Pressure!” At that moment, unbeknownst to Superman, three million miles away… “Superman is in our Range at last After thousands of centuries we’ve finally pinpointed him! Now we’ll seek him out and fulfill our destiny! Next, Superman flies to remote worlds all over the galaxy for exotic forms of alien plant life… And then he’s off to find the best birds and beasts to re-populate this world he is creating… Soon the Action Ace makes one final trip to a young planet still in its prehistoric era… “I’ve located the type of human inhabitants I want on this alien world… All these aliens are physically similar to the prehistoric men who inhabited the Earth ages ago! And that young couple is exactly what I want” And it isn’t long until…Something beautiful has been finished… “Now like Adam & Eve, that primitive couple will start another Human Race… I’ve given the Earth a second chance to flourish and prosper!” The Earth has been reborn! Pleased with his work, The Man of Steel leaves new Earth… When Suddenly! “ Superman! We’ve searched a million years and countless worlds for this moment! Now is the time for the KILL! A moment later, the motionless form of the Metropolis Marvel floats limply in space… Jumping back 10,000 centuries for the answer to this riddle we find; Lex Luthor! Yes! Luthor’s diabolical genius made sure he could destroy Superman even after his own death! It seems that when Luthor did die the psychic energy of his brain lived on in the form of a drone weapon traveling the centuries seeking Superman... But though the killer drone did strike at the man of Might, he still lives… Swooping out of deep space is the robotic Master Healer “[i] My life pulse sensors detect a very faint heartbeat from that wounded humanoid ahead... He’ll die unless I treat him!” It looks like a long shot, but when hope has almost faded, the Action Ace stirs… At last! you nearly died but I saved your life![i] the Master-Healer beams… “[i]WHAT! Exclaims Superman… Why did you do a fool thing like that! I’m over one million years old… I’ve outlived everybody and everything I care for… I wanted to die!” In a blind fury Superman streaks away from the Space station, but suddenly… Superman is engulfed by the monstrous tail of the Magnor Comet…and swept away at fantastic speeds towards the end of time itself! “I’m blacking out! For some time there is only darkness and oblivion… Then the blackness lifts… “My real parents died when the planet Krypton exploded… Jor-el and Lara! Am I dead? Meeting them in the next world? I’ll ask them…” But when the man of steel opens his mouth he is startled by his own words… “Me no want to take nap Mommy! Me want to play with Krypto!” “Great stars! I’m baby Kal-El on Krypton again… Somehow I’m reliving my life!” So little Kal drifts off to sleep…and when his eyes open, they view a totally different scene… “That’s Smallville down there… Just as it was when I was Superboy!” Another blackout… Another awakening... “I’m an adult now… Appling for a job at the Daily Planet in my Clark Kent identity!” Scene succeeds scene as Superman reenacts his past life… Until… “*GASP!* The Computo-Calendar in my fortress shows this is the day I went into the future… And was stranded… Will I have to do that again? No…This is after I left! The Time-Bubble I used is gone! Somehow, this time I’ve cheated my fate! But how?” “Many scientists believe that time curves back on itself…That somewhere, the past and future meet. Well I’ve just proved it! I traveled so far into the future I reached my own past and I got a second chance, Just as I gave Earth a second chance in the future!” The End! This is just one of the reasons I love Superman in the 70’s… Today’s fans; would have had epileptic seizures over the ramifications of this story and how it fit into continuity and what about DC 1,000,000 and so on and so forth… But back in those days… We couldn’t wait to read about another amazing adventure in the life of the Worlds Greatest Hero... Superman! ------------------ I have (more than likely) been dispatched by Justin Peeler ® IP: Logged |
| India
Ink Member |
posted February
11, 2002 07:21 PM
Just a few things to add Kev-El (and congratulations on a job well done)...if my eyes don't deceive me the covers on all three issues are indeed by the great Swanderson team. But as I was told before sometime ago, George Roussos inked Swan on the insides. And the story was written by none other than Cary Bates. IP: Logged |
| KEV-EL Member |
posted February
11, 2002 07:37 PM
Thanks for the info India... And thanks for this great thread and your tireless additions!!! I'm still not convienced about the inking though... I really do believe that at least the first two interors where Swan/Anderson... But after closer examination on #387... The inking was distinctly heavier than the first two... So you may be
right Anyone else still here have these issues? Too bad they didn't see fit to acknowledge those fine artists and writers in those days! Cary Bates heh? Great story!!! Maybe one of his finest!!! ------------------ I have (more than likely) been dispatched by Justin Peeler ® IP: Logged |
| Osgood
Peabody Member |
posted February
11, 2002 11:17 PM
Yes, according to the GCD, it was indeed Roussos who inked these stories. Anderson didn't start inking Swan until Action #393 (Oct. 1970) in a story entitled "Superman Meets Super-Houdini". IP: Logged |
| Aldous Member |
posted February
13, 2002 12:41 AM
Kev, Thanks for relating "The Immortal Superman" story. I'd still like to read those comic books. I envy you North American guys (and girls).... it's a lot harder (sometimes impossible) to find back issues in NZ - especially from an era so far removed as the 70s. It's possible to get back issues sent from the States, but it's a very expensive business. In the words of Billy Joel, "Maybe someday when my ship comes in." IP: Logged |
| VaughnN Member |
posted February
14, 2002 12:33 PM
Oh lord, the memories. I'm coming into this late aren't I? Nonetheless I'm gonna throw in my 2 cents worth. I read the post-crisis Supes for many years and enjoyed it, but the 70's man of steel is the one I grew up with. Prior to 1978 I had read a few super hero comics, but the movie got me fired up and I plunged into this wacky world and I've been there since. I'm Australian. Back then DC comics were, for the most part, published locally. Usually about 2 years behind the U.S., give or take, and sometimes out synch. It could be confusing at times. The good thing was we'd often get old stories printed with the new, and 'back issues' were easy to find. So I got up to speed pretty quickly. Anyway, I came in during the 'Pasko' era and that remains my favourite as well. I'd group #295 (the Father Time issue) through to #338 (Kandor's enlargement) together as a consistantly great run. I'd add Action #500 as something of a capstone to that era. There was a maturity to the characters that still holds up well today, IMHO. My only disappointment was the Kobra issue, which seemed lacklustre after Marty had built him up so well in his own title. But #296-299 and #310-314 stand out as the best of that run for me (#310 being the first 'new' metallo issue). The mid 70's era is something I lost touch with. I had a lot of the stories once, in B&W, but they are long since lost I'm afraid. The faves from the early 70's are; the 'sandman' issues; Kirby's Jimmy Olsen run and most of Julie Schwartz's World's Finest run. I still can't find #201 (GL co-stars), I've been after that one for years. At the time I really liked Superman Family. One in particular had (I think) the first team up of the Supermen of Earths one and two outside of the JLA. What else? A lot of individual stories, such as the oft-mentioned 'must there be a superman (and that Tomar Re 'sequal') A couple of Private Life of Clark Kent tales; Wein/Adams in #254, and the one where Pete Ross was going to demolish the old Kent home in a well intentioned attempt to help Clark. Don't have an issue# for that, sorry. The great thing about Cary Bates stories is that they are reasonably continuity free, so you can pick out whatever issues that you like. For me, thats stuff like the Amazo isues, the first Faora tale and the wedding of the E-2 superman. Streching into the 80's there is also 'the return of Jonathan Kent' and 'Luthor Reforms'. Now a few questions. Is it just me or did Amalak change from space pirate to homocidal loony without explanation. It's a sad 20+ year sticking point I know, but this topic stirred up that question for me again. Secondly, anyone else remember Elliot S! Maggin's Superman novels. I loved them as a kid. More good memories. Finally, what issues did Len Wein write in the early 70's. I've read some, but again I lost them years ago. Great thread, people. IP: Logged |
| Krypt0nite Member |
posted February
14, 2002 03:26 PM
What a great thread! The 70's were a wonderful time for the Man of Steel, and I am greatly enjoying this trip down memory lane. As far as Amalak goes, I don't remember there ever being an explanation from his shift from space pirate to someone bent on killing every living Kryptonian. In fact, I vaguely remember Supergirl wondering about this change in Amalak's motivation in one of his last appearances. I would love to see this villain brought back, as he was one of Superman's "Nine Deadliest Foes". Anyway, this is a great topic! IP: Logged |
| Aldous Member |
posted February
15, 2002 03:02 AM
VaughnN Gidday, mate.
quote: Nobody's perfect, Vaughn.
quote: Yes... I have hundreds of the Aussie-published comic books. You may remember titles like Superman Supacomic (which ran the "Sandman Saga"), Giant Superman Album, Super Adventure, Giant Batman Album. Going back a bit further we had All Favourites (starring Lois Lane), Wonder Comic, Mighty Comic (which ran King Kirby's Jimmy Olsen), The Original Green Lantern (which starred Hal-GL not Alan!), then Green Lantern Album, plus many others. The publisher's credit on the front cover went through changes - Colour Comics Pty. Ltd. and Planet Comics, to name a couple.
quote: Hope you caught my praise of Len Wein further back in the thread. I own two Maggin novels, 'Superman: Last Son Of Krypton' and 'Miracle Monday'. I have owned 'Last Son' since I was a young kid and I've read it many times. It is simply a superb little novel. I totally agree with you, Vaughn - good memories. Aldous IP: Logged |
| India
Ink Member |
posted February
15, 2002 09:51 PM
I have both those Maggin novels--and love them. They're packed away in some box somewhere--but as soon as I find them, I intend to re-read them. By the way, I've been doing lots of work on trying to organize boxes, build shelves, etc., so that I can better access the books and comics I want to get my hands on. But this is proving a Herculean task, thus I'm not able to do the thorough research needed for this thread at the moment. But I'll throw in a few observations (without benefit of adequate reference). I think Len Wein must have invented the concept of STAR labs in the DC universe. We see it again mentioned in the story talked about earlier, in Superman 251. If Wein (probably with Schwartz's help) is indeed responsible for STAR, then he should get a lot of credit. This has been a recurring concept in the DCU for the last thirty years, with many DC heroes now having some connection to it. And isn't it interesting that Victor Stone has such an important connection to STAR, when Len Wein was the guy editing those New Teen Titans stories written by his buddy Marv Wolfman, and illustrated by George Perez? But looking at my copies of 251 and 250, I'm struck by something about the art. While Swan's pencils are good here, Anderson's inks are irregular. Sometimes they look like Anderson, but sometimes they fall below the standard. (Indeed they look more like the inks by Roussos on the Immortal Superman stories.) I see a few possible explanations for this: 1} Anderson was finally overwhelmed by all the work he had to do each month, and so some of his inking is rushed; 2) overwhelmed, Anderson calls in an assistant or assistants (Roussos, Oksner, Blaisdell???) to help get the work done (or Schwartz calls in these assistants); 3) owing to the fact that art had to be mailed express (if artists couldn't get into the New York office on time), a lot of panel corrections were done by the DC production staff, and not the pencillers or inkers credited for the art--so it could be that some panels Anderson inked were corrected by diverse hands unknown; 4) some of the bad patches (but not all) in these panels could be the result of errors at the printer. That said, I like 251 nonetheless, and I like 250 even more. This is the return of Terra Man, but it's not about Terra Man. It's about____ (not having the book before me I can't give the fellow's name), who's another neighbour in Clark's building at 344 Clinton. This guy is obsessed by money and air. He works at the mint, printing money, in an environmentally controlled area. And thus he hates the unclean air of the outdoors. This story, by Cary Bates, pleases me because of this quirky character. And I liken it to the work of Broome (or Fox) in the sixties, where the hook of the stories (in Flash, GL, Batman, Elongated Man, etc) was the curious behaviour of these side characters. You got interested in these characters, what made them tick, and so you were very patient with the story as it unfolded (not needing big action scenes right upfront). Terra Man is just the costumed villain of the occasion, nothing much else, in this story--but that's the strength of Terra. He doesn't overtake the story, but plays his part in the whole ensemble. It's a lot harder to do that with attention demanding villains like Luthor, Brainiac, or the Joker, because they tend to overtake the story--and so there's no room to develop these curious side-characters like Clark's clean-air loving neighbour. This character develops an accidental ability to draw all the ink out of paper, by the way. And this makes me think, again, about printing. I was reading through some issues of Amazing World of DC Comics--and again I don't have the issue before me, so I can't give the number--and I came upon a little piece about Jack Adler... Now Adler was DC's production chief, but he was also so much more. The article tells about his gift for invention, and Adler developed a gizmo before ViewMaster that did what ViewMaster did but better, only he couldn't get the patent. And he apparently developed a method of printing 3D comics that worked without the split green (or blue) and red printing. And in the early seventies, at the urging of Infantino, Adler developed a method of photographing out the various colours on old comic pages, in order to create reprintable black and white copies. This is interesting to me, because in one lettercolumn, in response to the requests of a letterwriter, E. Nelson Bridwell says that it's impossible to reprint the earliest DC stories. But then in a subsequnet lettercolumn he tells us that DC has developed a new process which allows them to reprint early material. Which no doubt explains why so much material from the 40s was being reprinted by DC in the 70s. DC did reprint some early material before then, but I gather most of that was produced by tracing over the original. I recall that Infantino himself prepared the "Here Comes Alfred" story for reprinting in just this way, by re-inking the story himself. But Adler's process--which I gather used different films to filter out each individual colour (Blue, Magenta, and Yellow)--preserved the original inked version. Apparently he developed more than one process for doing this, and one was rather expensive--I gather DC usually used the cheaper process. Not being a scientific genius like Adler I can't explain how he managed all this. Oh, and I believe earlier I said the DC Special that reprinted the Toyman story was a 64 pager, when it was a 48 pager (at a time when DC books were going through page count changes on almost a monthly basis). And some day I'll have to get around to talking about the Pasko run (but I'd like to re-read the whole run first before doing that). I like a lot of individual writers on Superman, but the Pasko run was probably the most satisfying for me. For me Pasko's vision of Superman was the closest thing to perfect I can think of. Having said that, I always have to add in that I loved what Hamilton did (the great sweeping epics and mythology), or Bates (stories like the Immortal Superman), or Maggin (the decency of his Superman)--but Pasko was able to write the characters just right--he understood the ensemble cast perfectly--especially Lois, Clark, and Lana. His stories have stayed with me through the years. IP: Logged |
| The Old
Guy Member |
posted February
15, 2002 10:51 PM
Curve ball time. Does anyone remember "The Kid Who Struck Out Superman"? (Bonus points for mention of ridiculous plot point). Fond memories of that story, just gotta love 'em when you are a kid. IP: Logged |
| KEV-EL Member |
posted February
15, 2002 11:29 PM
Action Comics #389... A great a story, impossible by today’s standards... But mine only cost 15 cent and I still have it.... Superman tries out for every sport and kicks major butt in a tale that
stretches it as a far as it can be stretched… In the end Superman strikes out against little Jimmy… Seems the ball
Jimmy was throwing had been mutated with a Slurran microbe, and if he hit
the ball that would only mutate the Slurran life forms and…’ Well… you get it… Hey, its from June 1970… How cool were YOU in June 1970 But the story does end on an up note with these Words of Wisdom from The Man of Tomorrow: Sure, the kid fanned me, but I still won the BIG ball game! What a guy… ------------------ I have (more than likely) been dispatched by Justin Peeler ® IP: Logged |
| Aldous Member |
posted February
16, 2002 12:04 AM
Hi, India... another neat post.
quote: The name you're looking for is John P. Alstrom, official 'money-checker' at the mint.
quote: Me neither, and it's just as well - Cary's story has several gigantic scientific 'plot-holes' that bug me... One example is Terra-Man's winged horse beating its wings while hovering in mid-air - using this wing-beating, the horse pulls apart a stone wall undoubtedly weighing tons by using a 'vacuum-effect'. It draws the wall towards itself, tearing it down. Of course, in keeping with the laws of physics, the horse would have been pulled into the wall, thereby smashing itself instead of the wall. How do beating wings keep a creature up in the air while simultaneously pulling objects up from the ground, anyway? Are the wings pushing down at the air (to make the creature hover) or are they pulling at the air (how?), drawing the creature downward? It's just a silly scene that I want to skip over when I read the story.
quote: Nicely put. And 'Quirky' is an understatement. On page 9 Clark runs across Alstrom and thinks, "Oh, no! It's my eccentric neighbour from down the hall! What a morning to run into this bore!" I have to go... but I want to reply to more of your post later. IP: Logged |
| Aldous Member |
posted February
16, 2002 02:55 AM
Superman #250 (1972), "Have Horse, Will Fly" I see what you mean about the art, India. Re-reading it, it's plain the art's a little off, and your explanation of other inkers besides Murphy Anderson looks likely. IP: Logged |
