Monthly Archives: April 2019

The Ages of Cerebus (2011)

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The Ages of Cerebus (2011)
by Dave Sim (1956-)
16 x (8.5 x 11) in., pen on paper
Coppola Collection

During the “Cerebus TV” era (October 2009 – March 2012), Dave was sometimes taking orders for custom-request head sketches, using regular ink on non-archival Aardvark-Vanaheim stationary.

I would request multiple sketches and ask for them to be themed. Dave is a champ at taking a suggestion like this and running with it.

This request was for 16 drawings, done with the years, covering “the ages” of Cerebus. I suggested some dates for the later ones based on the published timelines, but Dave did not bite… including for Cerebus being 300 (presumably) at his death in issue 300.

Anyhow, here is what came back.

 

 

 

Cerebus The X-Varks (2010)

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Cerebus The X-Varks (2010)
by Dave Sim (1956-)
5 x (8.5 x 11) in., pen on paper
Coppola Collection

During the “Cerebus TV” era (October 2009 – March 2012), Dave was sometimes taking orders for custom-request head sketches, using regular ink on non-archival Aardvark-Vanaheim stationary.

I would request multiple sketches and ask for them to be themed. Dave is a champ at taking a suggestion like this and running with it.

I requested five drawings using the “Cerebus as the Original X-Men” theme (and that is the only suggestion I made towards this idea). Here is what came back.

 

 

The Four Seasons of Cerebus (2010)

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The Four Seasons of Cerebus (2010)
by Dave Sim (1956-)
4 x (8.5 x 11) in., pen on paper
Coppola Collection

During the “Cerebus TV” era (October 2009 – March 2012), Dave was sometimes taking orders for custom-request head sketches, using regular ink on non-archival Aardvark-Vanaheim stationary.

I would request multiple sketches and ask for them to be themed. Dave is a champ at taking a suggestion like this and running with it.

I requested four drawings using the “four seasons” theme (and that is the only suggestion I made towards this idea). Here is what came back.

 

“Cliffhanger” pp. 1-11 (1984)

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Presenting, for what appears to be the first time ever, “Cliffhanger,” by Craig Miller based on a screenplay script by Lon Casler Bixby.

Buddy Saunders recalls: “Craig was my first employee at Lone Star Comics, coming to work for me back in 1977. In those days, the Lone Star Comics “warehouse” was my two-car garage, and Craig would join me to pull comic orders after he completed classes at UTA. Craig continued to work for Lone Star, off and on, right up to the end of his life.”

During 1986-87, at the height of the post-TMNT b/w explosion, “Renegade Rabbit” was created by Craig Miller and, throughout its five-issue run, commented on the state of comics at the time.

Lon Casler Bixby writes:

Yes, I am the author of “Cliffhanger.”  I originally wrote it as a screenplay and made it into a short film.

A bit of history: I had known Craig Miller from college. We were classmates at the University of Texas at Arlington. I knew his love of comics and illustration. So after I made the film, I approached Craig and asked him if he would be interested in doing the artwork and turning my story into a comic. He was enthusiastic about it and before too long we had the comic finished.

He was involved in the comic industry and had contacted a few companies about getting it published. We finally found one that was going to publish it (sorry, I cannot remember their name), and everything was set – and then it wasn’t. At the last minute, they had decided not to, or had closed doors, or something… I just remember that for whatever reason it fell through and Craig and I were very disappointed about it. As far as I know, he had tried a few more times to get it published, but with no luck, the comic was shelved.

After that, Craig and I followed our own paths and lost touch.

Years ago, I had included “Cliffhanger” as part of a screenplay anthology. I shopped the screenplay around, it never sold, and once again the story was shelved.

Now, back to the other day – yes, remarkably, I was thinking about “Cliffhanger” again, and actually pulled it out of the files to read (and possibly rewrite) – in the hopes of including it in a novel of short stories that I will soon be working on.

The comic version is very close to the screenplay – I think the screenplay has a little more dialogue (maybe a line or two) – but other than that, they are the same. As mentioned – it’s just a short. It’s actually a tale that has been around for a long time – when I was trying to come up with an idea for a short to write/direct/produce (in college, we did it all) my dad told me the story and suggested I make it into a short film.

What about the film? Heartbreak. Back then, student films weren’t what they are today… For Cliffhanger, I had (for the time) a huge production. A couple nights in a gully in a Texas pasture, motorhomes, rented studio equipment, and I even had to get a utility pole installed in the middle of nowhere. I had horses brought in, full crew, shot on 16mm… and my main actor actually broke his ankle sliding over the edge of the cliff. After hours in the emergency room, he was a trooper, and came back to the set to finish out the shoot. Then, after two hard nights of filming, I took the film to the lab… and disaster hit.

We never did find out what was the cause, but all the rolls that we shot and developed came back “black.” That was it. It was like the entire movie was shot with the lens cap on. I laugh now, but it was terrible… I had no more time, nor money left to reshoot.  So I made the film, but there was nothing to see. But somewhere in a box, I do have some production stills.


“Cliffhanger” p 01 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection


“Cliffhanger” p 02 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection


“Cliffhanger” p 03 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection


“Cliffhanger” p 04 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection


“Cliffhanger” p 05 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection


“Cliffhanger” p 06 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection


“Cliffhanger” p 07 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection


“Cliffhanger” p 08 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection


“Cliffhanger” p 09 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection


“Cliffhanger” p 10 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection


“Cliffhanger” p 11 (1984)
written by Lon Casler Bixby (1959-)
art by Craig Miller (1959-2012)
12 x 18 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection

“The Spark Man” (Sparkler Comics 23, July 1943, pp. 8, 12, 13, 15, 16)

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Most of the characters that appeared in comics from the United Features publisher were “funny paper” characters they owned the rights to. However, they did get in on the superhero bandwagon during the late 1930s and early 1940s with at least two costumed hero strips that appeared only in their comics.

One of these characters was introduced in Sparkler Comics # 1 (July 1940). He was classical violinist Omar Kavak who, on finding that he sometimes built up a charge while using his bow, experimented to see just how far he might be able to push this phenomenon.

In the end, Omar invented a pair of odd-looking gloves that let him supercharge himself with static electricity.

Devising a costume and the secret identity of “The Spark Man,” he then went out to fight crime.

After a little over a year as The Spark Man, America entered World War II and Omar took a tack that some of the superheroes of the day did: he left his costume behind and joined the army to fight as a common, if not ordinary solider. He was still called The Spark Man, but he generally stopped using his powers, although they kept showing him in costume on the cover.

The series continued on with him as a solider, and then back in costume after the war. He appeared in 57 issues of Sparkler Comics (through July 1946) and in one issue if his own title in 1945.

In this issue: Captain Omar “Spark Man” Kavak and Sergeant T-Bone are under sealed orders to make a mysterious call on a Mr. Mona who owns a curio shop in a Moroccan city (pp. 7-16).


“The Spark Man” (Sparkler Comics 23, July 1943, p. 8)
by Fred Methot and Reg Greenwood (1899-1943)
13 x 20 in., ink on paper
Coppola Collection


“The Spark Man” (Sparkler Comics 23, July 1943, p. 12)
by Fred Methot and Reg Greenwood (1899-1943)
13 x 20 in., ink on paper
Coppola Collection


“The Spark Man” (Sparkler Comics 23, July 1943, p. 13)
by Fred Methot and Reg Greenwood (1899-1943)
13 x 20 in., ink on paper
Coppola Collection


“The Spark Man” (Sparkler Comics 23, July 1943, p. 15)
by Fred Methot and Reg Greenwood (1899-1943)
13 x 20 in., ink on paper
Coppola Collection


“The Spark Man” (Sparkler Comics 23, July 1943, p. 16)
by Fred Methot and Reg Greenwood (1899-1943)
13 x 20 in., ink on paper
Coppola Collection

“A Pear-fect Match” (2010)

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“A Pear-fect Match” (2010)
by Val McGann (1928-2016)
4 x 6 in., oil on panel
Coppola Collection

Val McGann, a native of Ballinasloe, Co. Galway, Ireland, studied at the National College of Art, Dublin and the Byam Shaw College of Art, London. He has exhibited in Dublin, London, Boston, New York and Washington

McGann had studios in Kennebunkport, Maine and Naples, Florida, and typically represented seascapes. In addition to shows in Dublin and London, he had one-man exhibitions in the House of Representatives, US Capitol Building, Washington DC and the Butler Galleries in New York City.

This small painting is characteristic of his later work. He had moved out of his studios and into the assisted care residence where his wife, who was suffering from dementia, was living.

Greek-Syria Antiochus VII (138-129 BCE) Tetradrachm (undated) AU

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Greek-Syria Antiochus VII (138-129 BCE) Tetradrachm (undated) AU
ΔI monogram over “A” in left field, inner right field “A”
16.5 g silver, 28 mm
Comparable BMC 19; Hoover HGC 1067; SC 2076; Babelon (Rois de Syrie) 1142
Comparable SMA 284, Sear 7092 var
Provenance: NGC 1937243-032
Coppola Collection

Diademed head of Antiochos VII (right)
BAΣIΛEΩΣ ANTIOXOY EYEΡΓETOY (of King Antiochus, Benefactor) to right and left of Athena standing left, holding Nike and spear and resting left hand on shield at her side.

Antiochus VII: The Last Seleucid King

Antiochus VII Euergetes (nicknamed Sidetes), also known as Antiochus the Pious, was ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire for 9 years, from July/August 138 to 129 BCE. He was the last Seleucid king of any stature.

The Seleucid Empire occupied the area roughly encompassed today by southern Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq. It was ruled by the Seleucid dynasty, which existed from 312 to 63 BCE. The capital was Seleucia (305-240 BCE), approximately at where Baghdad is today, then Antioch (240-63 BCE), at the Syria/Turkey border, where there was a mint.

After Antiochus VII Sidetes was killed in battle, the Seleucid realm, which was already in disarray, was restricted to Syria.

The Seleucid Empire became a major center of Hellenistic culture, maintaining the preeminence of Greek customs where a Greek political elite dominated. The Greek population of the cities who formed the dominant elite were reinforced by immigration from Greece. But Seleucid expansion into Anatolia and Greece halted abruptly in the early 2nd century BCE after decisive defeats at the hands of the Roman army.

Antiochus IV Epiphanes [ruler from 175 – 164 BCE]

After the death from disease of Antiochus IV Epiphanes (215-164 BCE), who had taken the throne in 175 BCE in the midst of conflict with Rome, the Seleucid Empire became increasingly unstable, with frequent civil wars.

Antiochus V Eupator [ruler from 164 – 161 BCE]

Epiphanes’ young son, Antiochus V Eupator, was first overthrown by Seleucus IV’s son, Demetrius I Soter in 161 BC.

Demetrius I Soter [ruler from 161 – 150 BCE]

Demetrius I attempted to restore Seleucid power, but was overthrown in 150 BC by Alexander Balas – an impostor who (with Egyptian backing) claimed to be the son of Epiphanes.

Alexander Balas [ruler from 150 – 145 BCE]

Alexander Balas reigned until 145 BC when he was overthrown by Demetrius I’s son, Demetrius II Nicator.

Demetrius II Nicator [ruler from 145 – 138 BCE]

Demetrius II proved unable to control the whole of the kingdom. While he ruled Babylonia and eastern Syria from Damascus, the remnants of Balas’ supporters – supporting Balas’ son, Antiochus VI – held out in Antioch, to the west. In 139 BCE, Demetrius II was defeated in battle by the Parthians and was captured. By this time, the entire Iranian Plateau had been lost to Parthian control.

Antiochus VII Euergetes Sidetes [ruler from 138 – 129 BCE]

Demetrius II Nicator’s brother, Antiochus VII Sidetes, took the throne after his brother’s capture.

He faced the enormous task of restoring a rapidly crumbling empire, one facing threats on multiple fronts. In the winter of 130/129 BCE, his army was scattered in winter quarters throughout Persia when the Parthian king, Phraates II, counter-attacked. Moving to intercept the Parthians with only the troops at his immediate disposal, he was ambushed and killed. Antiochus VII Sidetes is called the last great Seleucid king.

After the death of Antiochus VII Sidetes, all of the recovered eastern territories were recaptured by the Parthians, and a civil war soon tore the empire to pieces, historically ending 50 years later in 63 BCE.

“Afternoon Landscape” (2018)

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“Afternoon Landscape” (2018)
by Neil Carroll (1966 – )
6 x 8 in., Oil on Panel
Coppola Collection

Neil is a self-taught painter from London who has been painting in oils since 2011.

He is a “Daily Painter” with the goal of releasing a painting everyday. He is responsive to commission requests.

He has developed a strongly impressionistic style where broad statements of shape and color still convey a sense of detail.

“I don’t try to paint what is in front of me, I try to paint something with atmosphere and interest based on the subject. I remove as much detail as possible and paint as broadly as my mood allows.”

“Just Say Russia is Collapsing Three Times a Day” (April 25, 1939)

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“Just Say Russia is Collapsing Three Times a Day” (April 25, 1939)
by Mischa Richter (1910-2001)
11 x 13 in., ink and wash on paper
Coppola Collection

Mischa Richter (1910-2001) was a well-known New Yorker, King Features, and PM newspaper cartoonist who worked for the Communist Party’s literary journal “New Masses” in the late 1930 and early 1940s, becoming its art editor in the 1940s.

From the article on the page where this appeared… 1939… roll the tape…

“Current Catchwords: One of [the current] catchwords or slogans that deserves deep examination is the demand that the US must fight against “dictatorships of both right and left.” What is meant, practically, by those who use this catchword is that the US must refuse to cooperate with the Soviet Union. Its consequence… is to oppose every step by President Roosevelt to align the US with the peace forces of the work to halt the aggressors. … Roosevelt’s measures against the aggressor governments are the main danger to the peace of America and of the world, a view fully shared by the axis powers. We of the Communist Party… consider that the President’s leadership in this movement has been his greatest single contribution… He must make a clean break with the bankrupt and discredited [appeasement] policy of Chamberlain.”

The context for this cartoon is unclear. At this point, Russia was more or less allied with the US, although Stalin was also a more or less tyrannical leader. The editorial leadership would have been pro-Russia, so why does it help to think that Russia is collapsing?

The start of WWII was less than five months away. On April 13, Roosevelt had sent Hitler a telegram asking, “Are you willing to give assurance that your armed forces will not attack or invade the territory or possessions of the following independent nations?” Thirty-one countries were then listed. “If such assurance is given by your Government, I shall immediately transmit it to the Governments of the nations I have named, and I shall simultaneously inquire whether, as I am reasonably sure, each of the nations enumerated above will in turn give like assurance for transmission to you. Reciprocal assurances such as I have outlined will bring to the world an immediate measure of relief.” The message was ridiculed.

And on April 16, the Soviet Union proposed an alliance with Britain and France to contain German aggression in Eastern Europe. What we did not know is that the Soviets were working out their own non-aggression pact with the Nazis, which led directly to the invasion of Poland, and its subsequent division, at the end of August.

A Page of History

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“Charley-Horse Joins the Army” (ca. early 1942) by Jack A. Warren, unpublished
by Jack A. (Alonzo Vincent) Warren (1886-1955)
15 x 20 in., ink on heavy board
Coppola Collection

Jack’s father and step-father were both involved with horses and livestock, and he worked as a cow hand. He met writer and fellow cowboy, Tex O’Reilly (1876-1946), during a horse-buying trip in Wyoming.

In 1901, the 15-year old Warren began to work as an artist at the local newspaper, The Crawfordsville Daily Journal. In 1903, he moved to Des Moines, Iowa, to study at the Cummings Art School. In 1909 he left art school and moved to New York City to seek their fortune as a commercial artist, enrolling at the Art Students League with one of his buddies. Within a year, Warren was working as a commercial artist for The New York Sun.

In 1917 The Century Magazine published a series of stories by Tex O’Reilly about a folk hero, Pecos Bill, a legendary Texas cowboy, whose tall tales were recounted in American popular culture since at least the Civil War.

In 1927 Jack A. Warren and Tex O’Reilly drew and wrote a newspaper comic strip, “Pecos Bill,” for The New York Sun.

The first bi-monthly issue of Adventure Magazine in February of 1935 had a cover painting by Walter Baumhofer of “Pecos Bill Goes Hunting” by Tex O’Reilly. The story was illustrated by Jack A. Warren.

In February of 1935 Loco Luke by Jack A. Warren appeared in New Fun Comics, which was the first American comic book to include original material.


“New Fun Comics,” May 1935, featured Loco Luke on the cover

On July 4, 1935 Jack A. Warren began to draw Loco Luke for the George Matthew Adams Newspaper Syndicate, which also distributed several other strips that had also first appeared in New Fun Comics.

Loco Luke made four appearances in New Fun Comics (February-May 1935), and 2 appearances in Popular Comics (August and October, 1938), under the title “Loco Luke and his Charley Horse.”

“Popular Comics” #33 (October 1938) p. 55, feature “Loco Luke and his Charley Horse”

Loco Luke was a slapstick, zany cowboy strip.  It ran in the George Matthew Adams color Sunday section from July 5 1935 to April 4 1936, the entire (known) life of the this experiment in comics publishing.


A “Loco Luke” Sunday strip

When the Sunday section ended, one of only two features to survive was Loco Luke, which was revamped into Pecos Bill, adding Tex O’Reilly as a writer. Unfortunately, Pecos Bill came and went in a hurry.

Between 1936-39, the comic strip “Pecos Bill” by Tex O’Reilly and Jack A. Warren was published in nationwide newspapers by the George Matthew Adams Syndicate. The strip rose quickly to pre-World War II fame and earned Jack a career as a western-genre illustrator and cartoonist.

In 1938, Jack Warren no longer drew the newspaper comic strip “Pecos Bill.” He instead began to draw a different comic strip, “Pecos Pete,” which was not written by Tex O’Reilly, and which ran for 2 years. This was during a squabble over the rights to ‘Pecos Bill.’ It was the same character only he had received a lump on the noggin’, and forgot who he was.

In 1940, Jack moved on into comics. He did several series that were seen in Blue Bolt Comics, such as ‘Krisko and Jasper’ and ‘Spec Pot & Spud’. Warren’s art also appeared in a number of Lev Gleason, Spotlight and Marvel titles.

And that brings me to “Charlie-Horse joins the Army,” which was (clearly) never published. The page was drawn and inked, and the dialog put in (pencil). Warren lettered the first few panels and stopped.

A few comments: on the front, the upper left-hand corner indicates that this was meant to be a 5-page story. There is also a notation about “Maldin (sic) Bridge, N.Y.” (Warren and his wife moved to Malden Bridge in 1949). On the back, there is a note that “Richard Kraus mentions Charlie Horse” (Kraus was born in 1923 and graduated as an art major with a bachelor’s degree from City College of New York, ca. 1941, and found early work as an illustrator and editor for comic books and teen magazines. He tried to sign up for the war effort but was found ineligible for military service. He did government intelligence work in Texas during World War II). Warren was in his mid-50s at this point, so past the age for military service.

There is also a notation on the back with the name Willie Lieberson followed by Fawcett Comics, 1501 —, Paramount. Lieberson was the Editor in Chief at Fawcett Comics (located at 1501 Broadway, in the Paramount Building). Fawcett published Thrill Comics #1 (published January 1940 as an ashcan, or copyright holder) featuring Captain Thunder, which was reworked a month later into Whiz #2, featuring Captain Marvel.

One of their comics, Fawcett’s Funny Animals, went on sale in November 1942 (December 1942 cover), and ran until 1964. There would have been at least a 3-month lead time for an ongoing series, and the solicitation for this is likely to have been earlier.

So, if the notations are contemporaneous, I would guess this “Charlie Horse” comic page dates to early 1942, after Pearl Harbor (Dec 1941), given the subject matter, and before Kraus heads to Texas, and (complete speculation) that it was a pitch for the Fawcett Funny Animals book.  Charley Horse had appeared twice with Loco Luke, in the 1938 Popular Comics stories, so hearing about a funny animal book might have inspired Warren to revive the horse character. It would be the first page of the pitch, with Charley approaching the soldiers to sign up.

Why did it go unfinished? Did anyone even review it?

Who knows? The topic of the war might not have fit in with Fawcett’s plans for a light-humor book. So early in the US military effort, Warren references a few things from WW1 that would not be true during WW2: there was extremely limited use of cavalry, horses did not draw cannons the way they had 20 years earlier, so the premise might have been deemed as dated.

I have taken the scan of the page, as it exists, into Photoshop, and finished the lettering using copies of Warren’s work on the page.


The unpublished “Charley-Horse” page, lettered.

Thanks to Michael Lancaster (Dirt Road Pictures, LLC., and Calliope), who has contributed a lot of biographical information about his maternal grandfather, Jack Warren, to various internet sites, and for his kind responsiveness to my inquiries.

Tex O’Reilly (1880-1946) – Wikipedia entry
Obscurity of the Day: Loco Luke (May 6, 2013) – Stripper’s Guide
Jack A. Warren – Field Guide to Wild American Pulp Artists
Jack A. Warren – Lambiek Comiclopedia