Wednesday, 31 January 2018
Tuesday, 30 January 2018
Look around. Read and enjoy!
Wanted to make a point and this sale does that. This is a
£10.00 book at the online store and it was sold to someone in the United States .
Note that from the £10.00 I get £3.75 -the other £6.25 goes
to the printer and print on demand company.
It's still £3.75, right? Check
the screenshot below this.
The Ultimate Centaur Collection 2011Paperback,
A4
b&w
Vol 1
Centaur -the short-lived publishing house of some of the first and most unique Golden Age heroes that still live on in legend today! The Eye Sees! Truly weird and bizarre! The Clock! Airman! The Sparkler! The Blue Lady! Plymo! The Arrow! And others. Volume 1 is a treat for all Golden Age comic fans and a must have!
Volume 2
The Skull,The Shark,The Blue Lady and Amazing Man! These were part of the First Wave of US Golden Age comics that also includes Mini Midget and Mighty Man. This book also reprints the one and only appearance of the very first comic book Owl from 1940! A must for comic fans and Golden Age buffs!
148 Pages
Price: £10.00 (excl. VAT)Prints in 3-5 business days
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/hoopercomicsuk?searchTerms=the+ultimate+centaur
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/hoopercomicsuk?searchTerms=the+ultimate+centaur
Centaur -the short-lived publishing house of some of the first and most unique Golden Age heroes that still live on in legend today! The Eye Sees! Truly weird and bizarre! The Clock! Airman! The Sparkler! The Blue Lady! Plymo! The Arrow! And others. Volume 1 is a treat for all Golden Age comic fans and a must have!
Volume 2
The Skull,The Shark,The Blue Lady and Amazing Man! These were part of the First Wave of US Golden Age comics that also includes Mini Midget and Mighty Man. This book also reprints the one and only appearance of the very first comic book Owl from 1940! A must for comic fans and Golden Age buffs!
Note the * and fluctuations due to currency exchange -like most US companies the POD will wait until the rate suits them and not the publisher -me. So, based on previous knowledge that figure will be more like £3.00.
Still, £3.00 though, right?
Sadly, no. You see, the US Tax people will tax me on that as a foreign trader and have been doing
so for two years now despite my tax exemption claim –I cannot get a tax
statement to cover this from HM Tax and Revenue because I simply do not earn
enough to justify the effort or document (and I was told to stop sending in
statements re. sales until I reached a certain figure because it was time
wasting –someone in comics wants to be honest and gets the brush off!).
It means that the IRS will tax me. I may get £1.50-2.00 out
of this sale. Increase the book price?
No.
That tells you how it all works!
Now, cutting back on posts due to something I only learned today about the blog on other devices. So look around. Read and enjoy!
1939 -A Bad Year To Try To Sell British Comics To Germany.
Now, the idea of Amalgamated Press sending Caldicott and Carstairs (you have no idea who they are, do you?) to Germany at the start of the Second World War to sell its comic sets (strips) to the Germans may seem silly to you. I mean, one country at war with another and fatalities on both sides does not make you think of "business opportunities" does it?
Well, in 1982 there was the Falklands War/Guerra de las Malvinas and if you really need an history lesson on that you need to read some books. Anyway, I was on one of my regular trips to Fleetway/IPC and talking to Dave Hunt who edited a football comic (I've gone into this before) and showed him a few samples from artists and was told that although it looked "top quality" there was a problem. It seems that British artists would expect the full going rate per page which was not in anyway that great but it was a bill paid and food in the cupboard.
I was told that strips were being drawn by Argentinean artists, there were some delays in getting the finished art (everything was posted back then no scans!) back. Quite a few Argentinian artists were employed on the company's comics.
I then met Managing Editor Gil Page and asked about the Argentinian artists and was told they were used on a few books because they were paid far less. Now the fact that artists were being paid less annoyed me a lot. You do the same work as a British artist you should get the same pay, right? British artists who were quite capable of doing the same work, were losing out to cheaper ...well, not even competitors.
But there was another aspect that seemed odd considering the gung-ho climate being generated in the UK at the time. We were in a state of war with Argentina and were recruiting, employing and paying artists from there because it was "cheaper". And the company continued to employ Argentinean artists even after the conflict but when there was still an official state of war.
The excuse was that this was business and had nothing to do with the war going on. I know a few people were shocked when they heard of this and you know those legendary, great creative editors everyone seems to currently worship as they re-write the history of what they did at Fleetway/IPC (I met and talked to most of them so I know what they were doing) ? They knew and had no problem with this practice and one in particular showed me art from Argentina that was "not really up to scratch but it's cheaper".
Think about that and ask yourself: would the AP have employed German artists during World War II because it was just "business" and cheaper ?
We know that American comics were full of crooks and the UK had its own versions -but double and triple book-keeping and "publishing fiddles" were far more subtle. Like a lot of American comic editors, their British counterparts also have a lot of known (in circles) dirty secrets but this is all being glossed over and when spoken about they are just jokingly called "roguish"
A crook is a crook and I just do not care to join in with the praising of the people or perpetuating the lies of their pals and hanger-ons about what they did, what they created. Writers and artists were treated like shit and cheated: remember that and this involved editors not just management.
Why were editors not allowed to know where the company was storing all the original artwork -so much of it went, uh, "missing" that it makes the loss of Kirby artwork look like a drop of piss in the ocean. Management knew where the art had been going.
I remember having to provide a copy of scripts I was paid for because the accountants had caught on to non-existent scripts they were paying out on. And ask why I was never paid the £5000+ for scripts and art -"take that up with the editor. He is no longer with the company"...says it all.
Self publish and be poor through your own work!
Monday, 29 January 2018
Flying In and Flying Out
I have to wonder whether some of my posts are a bit too "obscure" for some readers. I have covered
Marvel and the Avengers as well as the Sub-Mariner (the Avengers a few times!) and DC with my look at the Justice League (volume 1 of course). Then there was the mega Atlas Comics post. Posts on Indian comics, Chinese (PRC and Hong Kong) as well as comics from Singapore. Russian, Polish, French and German comics...
And let's not forget the Small Press!
The problem is that I have no idea what interests readers out there -but the high view numbers indicate I must be getting something right!
So, for a while -as long as I can- I'll keep the mix going. There have been, I checked, 2,702 comments since 2011 and, sadly, most of that is chat between myself and friends! Still I can use that as a good stat!
Now, gotta fly as my date just flew in.
And let's not forget the Small Press!
The problem is that I have no idea what interests readers out there -but the high view numbers indicate I must be getting something right!
So, for a while -as long as I can- I'll keep the mix going. There have been, I checked, 2,702 comments since 2011 and, sadly, most of that is chat between myself and friends! Still I can use that as a good stat!
Now, gotta fly as my date just flew in.
Top 10 Best Vintage Flash Gordon Toys
At least the Galoob Defenders of the Earth figures got a mention! Mine are on the shelf.
It Was A Very Long Day And A Very Painful Night...I'm not talking about my love-life.
shh! They are watching!
Well, I tee hee hee hope everyone enjoyed the Atlas Comics Mega Post yesterday? Neck and eyes are ruined but if someone enjoyed it the effort was worth it. Is that sarcasm? By 23:00hrs (UK time) I had comic cover blindness and the text was vanishing in a fog of my own eyes making!
Subzero, over at Tales From The Kryptonian, noted that his post yesterday was number 900. So out of curiosity I checked and there have been 95 (What??) this month. Since 2011 there have been some 6,013 posts. Now even with blogger's habit of making images vanish you are still looking at thousands of images and I really -really- do not want to even think about how many million words. I fainted when I though of the posts on the old Yahoo 360 blog, the Freeservers and WordPress and what they contained!
As I have written before, all of this is done with no sponsorship (especially not from the companies who do well out of CBO) or GoFundMe or Patreon or whatever. Buy a magazine with just the one mega Avengers post and it would cost you a lot of cash. Two or three mega-posts and you are looking at the cost of a very hefty book. Costs that would reflect the amount of time and work put into them.
Now I know you don't really care and I'm sure people switch off what they read in these posts but: my online store is covered in cobwebs but full of books that should be my income. If you want to show support for all this effort then please visit the store and consider buying something you like the look of. Thank you.
If you are saying "Why the feck should I spend my money on your books?" Then God Bless You (in the true Victorian beggar meaning of that).
I had a couple other big posts planned but let's see what the reaction is (I may get two comments from the usual two people!)
Now...someone keeps flying past my face....
Sunday, 28 January 2018
Addison Morton "Mort" Walker 3rd September, 1923 – 27th January, 2018)
Mort Walker, the creator of the long-running cartoon Beetle Bailey, has died in the US state of Connecticut aged 94.
His son, Greg Walker, said his father had drawn the cartoon of a work-shy army private for 68 years and "he was drawing up to the end".
At its peak, the Beetle Bailey ran in 1,800 newspapers around the world and reached 200 million readers.
It began in 1950 with Beetle as a college student, but he was soon enlisted in the armed forces.
It included characters such as Sgt Snorkle and Gen Halftrack, who existed in the fictional Camp Swampy.
The setting was inspired by Mr Walker's experience in the US Army during World War Two.
In 2000, he was awarded the army's highest civilian honour - the Distinguished Civilian Service award - for his work and military service.
Fellow cartoonist Mark Evanier paid tribute to Mr Walker on his website.
"He was delightful to be around and always willing to draw Beetle or Sarge for any of his fans. He sure had a lot of them," he said.
MEGA POST!! Before Watchmen. Before The Dark Knight Returns. There Was Atlas Comics
If you want a full list of contents and other background articles including Vengeance Incorporated by John B. Cooke...
If finding that mag is too expensive then the Atlas Archives has the full text on its site:
Thank You
Now the article
So it's 1975 and I am living near Ramsgate, in Kent . A small seaside town where, in those days,
come 17:00 hours Summer or Winter the place was devoid of life. I used to go
for walks through the town and see no one.
Anyway, one day it is hot and sunny -in those days that
meant Summer- and I tell my then little
brother Mike that we'll pop into a newsagent shop on the High Street and see if
they have any comics to while away the boredom.
The week before on a day trip to Margate
I had snagged a whole bundle of Marvel Two-In-Ones for half price each. It was another seaside town and the shop
owner couldn't care less so long as he made some money selling the comics and
if I recall, he said I was the only one who had shown any interest.
But back to that Ramsgate newsagents -and there were no
comic speciality stores around back then so this was the place to buy comics.
Walked in and looked around and saw "Atlas Comics" -what? Had Marvel
reverted to an old name?? Anyway, there were a couple books there so I grabbed
them and when we returned to the luxurious trailer where we were living (I'm
being sarcastic there) I opened up Weird Suspense #1....
Wait -Dick Giordano from DC Comics did the cover? Curse of the Tarantula was written by Mike
Fleisher and drawn by Pat Boyette who I knew as a Charlton artist and so I just
shrugged because my main interest was the story and art -and with Boyette it
was good work that lended itself well to the story. And what a story!
|
The Barton Brothers escape from a maximum security prison
and manage to evade the police.
They find an old dilapidated house and attempt to seek food
and clothing from it's owner.
Unfortunately for the Bartons, they have wandered into the
home of Count Eugene Lycosa, also known as the Tarantula. The felons attempt to
flee as the Count transforms himself into the arachnid creature. They are soon
trapped in the web of the Tarantula, who crawls down the web to devour his
victims.
But who is Count Lycosa? And how did he become the fearsome
Tarantula? The story begins in Europe during
the Middle Ages. Hideous Spider-Monsters, led by the Spider-Priestess, are
terrorizing the countryside. Villagers are devoured by the Spider-Creatures or
are transformed into the hideous creatures.
In order to stop the creatures, Count Lycosa, disguised as a
tarantula, follows the creatures back to their hidden Glen. He quickly returns
to inform the villagers of the location of the Spider-Priestess. A horde of
villagers return to slaughter the tarantulas and burn the Spider-Priestess at
the stake.
Prior to her death, she places a curse upon all male
descendants of the Lycosa famly. The will forever suffer... The Curse of the
Tarantula.
Whoa! He actually…eats the criminals. Being a
veteran old horror movie and comics fan by that tender age I loved this. I did wonder how Americans would take this
but in the UK
we were used to anti-heroes (the Spider et
al) though I don’t think any actually ate crooks.
Above: The Larry Leiber (yes, Stan Lee's brother) cover to issue #2
Rich Buckler's cover for the third and final issue of Weird
Suspense.
No matter how I tried I could not find a fourth issue. But the other title I picked up was The
Grim Ghost and the covers and interior art were by another name I
recognised –Ernie Colon. Issues 1 and 2 were written by Fleisher with Tony
Isabella stepping in on issue 3.
If Boyette’s art work had lent atmosphere to the Tarantula
then
Colonial
The authorities quickly arrive but the Grim Ghost has made
his escape. Their search takes them to the home of Matthew Dunsinane, who has
seen no one pass his way.
The following morning an outraged Lord Braddock demands that
the Grim Ghost be apprehended. The authorities, who have never seen the Grim
Ghost without his mask, have no way of catching him. Lady Braddock, however,
claims that she can catch the Grim Ghost.
Several nights later, a lavish affair is held at Lord
Braddock's mansion. Matthew Dunsinane attends, and is introduced to Lady Sarah
Braddock. Several hours later, Lady Braddock tires and retires for the evening.
In her bedroom awaits the Grim Ghost, ready to claim his prize. The Ghost,
however, has been duped as the authorities quickly surround him. He is unmasked
as Matthew Dunsinane.
Justice is swift and in just three weeks, Matthew Dunsinane
is due to hang until dead. As he falls thru the gallows trap, he is transported
to Hell, where he encounters Satan. In desperate need of souls for his kingdom,
he offers Matthew a deal. Keep his kingdom supplied with the souls of the evil
and he may remain on earth. Matthew agrees rather than endure the tortures of
the damned.
Satan sends Matthew to the 20th century, where evil runs
rampant. And so is born... The Grim Ghost.
Well, in the
I just sat there and re-read the comics several times. Stories –great. Art was, in both titles,
perfect. And when I saw
Tiger-man and what went on in his comic I damn near wet myself.
Ernie Colon drew the cover for issue #1 and internal art
while #2 saw Steve Ditko jump on for one solo issue and for #3 Ditko was joined
by Al Milgrom. Frank Thorne (a vastly under-rated artist) and
Larry Lieber drew the third cover. Gabe
Levy wrote the first issue story and then Gerry Conway wrote issues 2 and 3.
The story and origin is simple enough but
While serving a two-year internship at a clinic in
Eager to see the results of his work, he injects himself
with the tiger chromosome. He soon discovers that he the strength and agility
of a tiger.
His internship at an end, Dr. Hill returns to the states. He
is greeted by his sister, Anna. After dropping her brother off at a downtown
hotel, Anna heads home. Upon her arrival, she is greeted by two thugs who
proceed to rob and murder her.
The tragic event causes Dr. Hill to don the costume given to
him by Chief Jnuka as he left
His cat-like senses allow him to track the two thugs that
killed his sister to a rodeo. He follows the two to a nearby bar and confronts
them. They are no match for the ferocity of Tiger-Man as he takes his revenge,
slaying the two men that murdered his sister.
To me this was all just plain weird. People who worked at DC, Charlton and Marvel
were working on these books and the characters and stories were not like
anything seen before (yes, 1940s comics were violent and in those costumed
heroes shot or even lynched a villain or two but this…).
It took a few years of back street newsagents shops scouring
and then finding the odd book at the old Bath Marts but I completed my run of
Atlas books and they were well over a decade ahead of the 1980s and Watchmen
or The
Dark Knight Returns.
Then we had The Brute.
Not quite the Hulk but the cover to issue #1 was by Dick Giordano and Mike
Fleisher scripted while the great Mike Sekowsky aided byPablo Marcos drew the
interior art.
Frozen for centuries, the Brute is released when a nearby
power plant causes the temperature to rise 5 to 6 degrees, melting his frozen
prison.
Three young boys have the misfortune of wandering into his
cave. Two are horribly killed by the Brute, while one manages to escape to
notify the authorities.
The police arrive to gas the cave and force the Brute out
into the open. A tranquilizer dart subdues the creature, but not before he
smashes a TV cameraman against the wall of the cliff.
The Brute awakens behind bars, his fate to be decided by a
judge. The father of the dead boys, Mr. Carlson, wants vengeance, while Dr.
Turner, an anthropologist, wants to study the Brute in captivity. The judge
rules in favor of Dr. Turner, much to the dismay of Mr. Carlson.
Months pass as Dr. Turner and the Brute begin to form a
bond. While leaving the lab one evening, she is struck from behind by Mr.
Carlson. He releases the Brute, in hopes that he will be blamed for attacking
Dr. Turner. Seeing the injured Doctor, the Brute turns on Mr. Carlson, crushing
him against a concrete wall.
The Brute then escapes... and the manhunt begins.
Okay, at no point was Kolchak: Night Stalker involved in any
of this and to get that reference I guess you needed to have watched the
show. In the January, 1975 episode “Primal Scream”, ancient cells discovered
in the arctic by oil men give rise to a carnivorous, evolutionary ancestor of
man and a corporate cover-up.
 
For issue #2 the cover
by Dick Giordano and Larry Lieber was altered prior to publication and I tend
to think that, although the published cover looks great, the original is just
so much cooler! The same creative team
were on the book while, for issue #3 not only did Pablo Marcos produce a great
cover that still “wows” the eyes decades later but the art inside was by
another unrecognised great –Alan Weiss along with Jack Abel.
All that went through my mind was what happened if The
Brute, Grim Ghost, Tiger-man and all the others met up? Phew!
Frank Thorne drew the cover to #1 of The Cougar while Steve
Mitchell wrote and Dan Adkins and Frank Springer provided art. Although the TV
series, Fall Guy, starring Lee Majors as a stunt man who did part-time bounty
hunting, did not appear until 1981, stuntmen and women were becoming legends in
the 1970s so why not a comic based on one?
Jeff Rand is known to fellow stuntmen as the Cougar, due to
his cat-like speed and agility.
While inspecting an ancient castle for the next day's shoot
for the film "The Gore of Dracula", Jeff's buddy Roger inadvertently
revives the vampire Krolok. Roger quickly becomes the vampire's first victim.
Later, Krolok wanders thru town and encounters the tavern
where the Cougar and his friends have gathered. Krolok recognizes Kathie as his
lost love Katya and attempts to abduct her. The Cougar battles Krolok to a
standstill, yet the vampire escapes when the police arrive.
Later the next evening, Kathie is being protected by the
Cougar and the police, who fear that Krolok will attempt to kidnap her. Krolok
indeed does attack, subduing both the police and the Cougar. Katie is gone as
the Cougar awakes.
The Cougar immediately heads for the castle, where he finds
Krolok ready to drain Kathie of her blood. A battle ensues, which ends when the
Cougar drives a stake thru the vampire's heart.
Gary Friedrich wrote the second story and Frank Springer did
solo art behind a cover by Rich Buckler and Al Milgrom and then…nothing.
More of a sci fi character to start with was astronaut Ed
Tyler -The Phoenix. Oddly, I
found #2 first and #1 a week later! Jeff Rovin wrote the story for #1 and I
ought to point out that he edited the Atlas Comic line. Sal Amendola and Dick Giordano worked on the
cover and, guess what? Sal Amendola’s art suited the story-line perfectly.
After some months on board the Threshold I space station,
the three-man crew were forced to abandon ship after an air-leak. The escape shuttle made a three-point
emergency landing (Here, There and Everywhere!) in the Arctic –
 
Rovin plotted issue #2 while Gabe Levy scripted it and issue
#3 –Amendola remained on the art chores nd Frank Thorne provided another great cover and #4 was all change as Lieber drew
the cover and Gary Friedrich wrote the story and Ric Estrada and Frank Giacoia
gave the character his more super hero look. The costume change was supposedly
due to
Despite the story and art the costume change never worked.
Then came…The Destructor! Larry Leiber drew
all four covers for the four issue series The Destructor –assisted on #1 by
Wally Wood. Awhile Steve Ditko and Wally
Wood worked on the art no less than Archie Goodwin wrote the story. Yes –the Archie Goodwin! And he wrote the
first three issues until
Basically, Jay Hunter, a young mob thug, is deemed too
ambitious by his boss, Max Raven, so he orders him to be eliminated.
Jay and his father are soon gunned down in a hail of
bullets. In a last ditch effort to save his son, a dying Simon Hunter gives him
the serum he has been working on for years, a serum he hopes will create a
super-hero. The serum does it's job as Jay's body begins to heal itself. He
later discovers a costume his father has left behind. He becomes... The
Destructor.
The Destructor now sets out to destroy all of Max Raven's
operations. Unable to stop the Destructor on his own, Max enlists the aid of
the hired assassin, Slaymaster, to eliminate the Destructor.
After destroying yet another Mob operation, the Destructor
contacts Max Raven, who proposes that they settle this feud, once and for all.
They are to meet at the Giant Novelty Company. Slaymaster will be lying in
wait.
As the Destructor arrives at the Giant Novelty Company, he
is attacked by Slaymaster. Overmatched at first, The Destructor recovers and
dispatches the paid assassin.
The Destructor returns to Max Raven's headquarters,
disguising himself as Slaymaster. He reveals himself to be the Destructor and
is about to unmask in front of Raven. Hearing footsteps approaching, he slips
away while Max Raven is gunned down by his own men, who fear he is losing
control of the Mob operation.
The Destructor then reveals his identity to a dying Max
Raven and vows to continue his fight for justice.
Well, for three more issues anyway.
Remember Howard Chaykin’s character Dominic Fortune? Ahem. Before that was The Scorpion! Written and drawn by Chaykin the first cover
was lovely and stylish and for #2 Ernie Colon drew the cover while Jim Craig
drew #3s cover. What happened creatively
is legendary in its confusion and complexity but Gabe Levy wrote #3 and the art
was by Jim Craig.
Jules Reinhardt,
After meeting with Mrs. Reinhardt, the Scorpion learns that
Max Cervantes is somehow involved in Mr. Reinhardt's disappearance. Max
Cervantes, however, died 8 years ago in a plane wreck.
The Scorpion's investigation leads him to one unmistakable
conclusion, that Max Cervantes is still alive. He heads to the Skylight Room, a
former speakeasy once owned by Max.
It is there that the Scorpion finds the lifeless body of
Jules Reinhardt, only to be told that Jules Reinhardt is, indeed, Max
Cervantes. Cervantes faked his death 8 years ago and changed his face, taking
the identity of Jules Reinhardt.
After changing identities, Max skipped out on his partner,
Buddy Lyle. There had been rumblings that Lyle had suspicions about Reinhardt,
causing Reinhardt to grab his bank books and hide out. He was murdered using a
voodoo doll and his bank books are missing.
Buddy Lyle now has the bank books, but they are of no value
to him. Mrs. Reinhardt must sign off, in person, in order to withdraw any
funds. He plots to kidnap Mrs. Reinhardt in order to empty the off-shore
accounts. In addition, he tells his associate to dispose of the voodoo lady, Ol
Rose. It was her voodoo magic that helped to kill Jules Reinhardt. He does as
he is told, but not before the old woman casts two hexes on Buddy Lyle,
insuring his death.
The Scorpion confronts Lyle and his henchmen at the
Manhattan Sky Port. Lyle has taken the Scorpion's assistant, Ruby, hostage,
mistaking her for Mrs. Reinhardt.
As the Scorpion battles Lyle and his henchman, the first hex
begins to unfold. Lyle's pet cat, Caesar, is transformed into a man-eating
lion. It strikes at Lyle and kills him instantly. The threat is ended when the
Scorpion kills the beast in a hail of machine gun fire.
Thinking the threat has ended, ruby informs the Scorpion
that Jules Reinhardt's body has vanished from the funeral parlor. The second
hex has taken form. The Scorpion heads to the Reinhardt home to find the zombie
like body of Jules Reinhardt, attempting to kill his wife. Striking the
creature again and again has no effect, so the Scorpion must resort to drastic
measures. He unleashes a grenade and grabbing Mrs. Reinhardt, jumps from the
balcony as the grenade obliterates Jules Reinhardt.
It captured the atmosphere of the old pulps wonderfully but
you’ll note that with issue #3 the Scorpion had a super hero costume and Larry
Lieber was editing so was there a plan behind all the super hero costumes
turning up?
Atlas Comics was, seemingly, trying to emulate Marvel Comics and I will return to that.
My next find was Morlock 2001 and behind the Al
Milgrom and Dick Giordano cover was a story by Mike Fleisher drawn by Milgrom
and Jack Abel. Savage Tales #1, May,
1971 featuring the Lee, Thomas, Conway and Gray Morrow drawn Man-Thing
and Swamp
Thing (first series 1972-1976) appeared before Morlock so that raises
certain questions. Personally, I go with
the flow since The Heap appeared first in Hillman Periodicals' Air
Fighters Comics #3 and that had
a cover-date of December, 1942!
Anyway, it is the year is 2001 A.D. and a totalitarian
regime holds people in an iron grip. The Thought Police break into the home of
Professor Kroschell, who has been conducting illegal botanical experiments.
They liquidate the Professor and set his home ablaze. They leave with two large
pods which are the product of his last, and greatest, experiment.
The pods are kept under observation at a laboratory complex.
Weeks pass until one of the pods begins to open. The scientists are shocked to
find a human growing inside the pod. He is removed from the pod and placed in
the hospital rejuvenator.
Eventually, the pod creature awakens and begins to speak. He
is given the name Morlock and indoctrinated so that he can be used for the
benefit of the regime. Weeks later, Morlock inadvertently makes contact with
one of the scientists -within seconds, the life of the scientist is snuffed out
as his body is completely covered by a green plant like fungus.
The government decides to use Morlock as an assassin. They
send him out to "touch" those the government has deemed subversive.
Morlock is torn by his actions and voices his displeasure.
Days later, Morlock is befriended by Lynda, who, unbeknownst
to Morlock, has been assigned by the Government to further brainwash Morlock.
Lynda encourages him to continue his work for the government.
However, Morlock can no longer continue taking the lives of
others. He heads to the lab complex to refuse any further assignments. He over
hears Lynda's in a nearby office and realizes that she is a government agent.
His rage and anger cause him to transform into the mindless Morlock and then
devours and absorbs Lynda, leaving only a pool of brackish slime behind. After
fleeing the lab complex, Morlock reverts back to human form and is now a
fugitive from justice.
I try as hard as I can to avoid all the double entendres but
honestly!
Morlock 2001 #2 had the same creative team and a Lieber cover. For
#3 Rich Buckler drew the cover and the interior art was by Ditko and Berni
Wrightson no less! Gary Friedrich took over the writing.
To me this is still a great character but like most of the
Atlas characters he never made it past #3.
Giordano, Thorne and Buckler respectively drew the covers
for #1-3 of Targitt written by Ric Myers and drawn by Howard Nostrand in #1
and for #2 Gabe Levy co-wrote with Myers and for #3 Gerry Conway jumped in to
co-write. Nostrand drew all three issues.
John Targitt, Special Agent for the FBI, sees his wife and
child off on a short vacation. The plane is barely airborne when it explodes,
bursting into flames and killing everyone aboard.
Mob Boss Bert Manetti was aboard the plane, and someone
wanted him eliminated. At the crash site, Targitt finds the remains of a
As Targitt leaves the airport, an attempt is made on his
life. Foiling the assassin, he discovers who is responsible for the bombing of
the plane.
His information leads him to a
Targitt makes his way to
After overcoming the mob assassins, Targitt uncovers
documents concerning a large drug shipment due to arrive at the Mystic Seaport
in
Defying his FBI boss Carl, he heads for the Mystic Seaport.
He battles his way aboard the vessel containing the drug shipment.
As a helicopter tries to make a getaway with the drug
shipment, Targitt unleashes a barrage of machine gun fire, destroying the
helicopter and the drugs within.
Well, seems like a good crime comic, however, with issue #2
out came the costume and the title became John Targitt: Man-Stalker! And in #3 he faced Professor Death. Now I
have no problem with switching from civilian clothes to a costume if it is done
for the right reason –I still say
Steve Englehart and Jim Starlin’s Shang-Chi first appeared
in Special
Marvel Edition #15 in December, 1973. It was popular and so by #17 the book was
retitled The Hands of Shang-Chi: Master of Kung Fu. The Kun-Fu TV series that seemed to
spark the fuse starred David Carradine and ran from 1972 to 1975. So, ahem, Atlas got a martial arts book….
…The Hands Of The Dragon! Well, there was only one issue with a
cover by Jim Craig and story by Ed Fedory with art by Craig and Jim Mooney.
According to the plot-line:
An elderly man is travelling to
While approaching the summit of
The old man soon arrives at a monastery deep in the
The years pass and the boys grow into men. Wu Teh (the
Dragon) and Ling (the Cobra) however, have chosen different paths. The scars on
his face have left Ling bitter, cruel and devoid of mercy. Ling has also been
seen in the company of the evil Dr. Nhu.
During martial arts training, the brothers come to blows.
Ling loses all control and attempts to take his brother's life. The grandfather
attempts to intervene and make peace between the two. A spear meant for Wu Teh
strikes the old man and kills him. Ling flees the monastery while Wu Teh swears
vengeance.
After his grandfather's death, Wu Teh leaves the monastery
and settles in
Speaking at the local university, the Prime Minster is indeed
targeted for death. The Dragon spots Dr. Nhu and barely stops the assassination
attempt. As he is subduing Dr. Nhu, the Cobra strikes. His bullet pierces the
Prime Minister. Both Ling and Dr. Nhu escape as the Dragon tends to the wounded
Prime Minister.
Hours later, the Dragon enters the hospital room of the
Prime Minister, who is near death. The Dragon removes his medallion and the
essence of life and strength revive the Prime Minister.
The Dragon is left to ponder when Dr. Nhu and the Cobra will
strike again.
I actually checked and no one has heard anything of Dr. Nhu
since 1975 –though there was a bit of confusion when people thought I was
asking about Dr. Who! I just hope that the Dragon has not been sitting around
for decades waiting…seriously –what is he living off?
It was an enjoyable comic but just one issue…sad.
An assassin is about to the take the life of Damian Severs.
Before he can strike, he is confronted by Gideon Cross, member of the Harvester
of Night Cult. He gives the assassin a choice, to fight or to jump off the
cliff. Not having the courage to face Cross, he leaps to his death.
Gideon then returns to the home of his employer, Damian
Severs, to collect payment for his services. His payment is more than money, he
demands a small flask of blood from Severs. This flask will then be handed over
to the Harvester of Night Cult.
Gideon is given another assignment by Severs. Kill his
former partner, a Mafia kingpin who has been hiding out in
As Gideon begins to drift off to sleep, he recounts how he
became a Harvester of Eyes. The Cult gave him a sense of purpose after he
returned from
Gideon accompanies Severs to a huge drug transaction. After
this deal, Severs will be able to go legit, and finally settle up with his
back-stabbing partner.
Gideon takes his leave of Severs and several days later,
arrives at the airport for his flight to
Prior to leaving on his flight, he must deliver the flask of
Damian Sever's blood to a cult member. Upon entering a storeroom to meet his
contact, he is attacked by a demon. The Cult has sensed his upcoming betrayal
and has chosen to eliminate him. Cross manages to defeat the demon but many
questions remain unanswered. He realizes, however, that the Cult has been using
him. But for what purpose ?
Rather than go to
Upon entering the Sanctum, he is witness to a bizarre ritual
as the Cult uses the life essence of Damian Severs to revive Astoroth, Grand
Duke of Hell. His goal - Xenogenesis, the re-birth of the demon race on earth.
Knowing that he cannot defeat the entire Cult, he flees the Sanctum. He knows
that the Cult will come looking for him.
Gideon Cross has a new purpose - to prevent the re-birth of
the demon race. He has become...Demon-Hunter.
Gary Friedrich wrote another one-off that had an incredible
Frank Thorne cover (look at that cover!!) plus interior work by Thorne –Son of Dracula in Fright
#1
A witch about to be burned at the stake has captured the
attention of Count Dracula. He sees the woman as a way to satisfy his lust for
human blood. He swoops down and claims the woman from the terrified villagers.
He takes the unconscious woman to his castle and prepares to
feast. The Count recoils in shock as he notices the birthmark of Dracula upon
her breast. She is the only living relative of Count Dracula, his fourth
cousin. He soon learns that she is the only female ever born to a Dracula.
The urge for human blood, however, proves to great for the
Count to overcome. He reveals himself to be a vampire and prepares to drain the
blood from the woman. In a desperate attempt to save her life, the woman offers
the Count a son, a son which is of the pure blood of Dracula. In exchange, he
will not convert her to one of the undead. The Count agrees, and 9 months
later, Dracula has a son.
After the child is born, Dracula deems her cousin to be of
no further use. He attacks her, despite his word not to, and satisfies his lust
for human blood.
The next morning, despite being weak from Dracula's attack,
she takes her child to a ship that will set sail for
Time passes, and the Son of Dracula, known as Adam Lucard,
is a teacher at
One evening, his sleep is interrupted by one of his
students, who breaks into his apartment in an effort to surprise him. She
removes the cross from his neck and quickly becomes the first victim of the Son
of Dracula.
Rich Buckler cover and Gary Friedrich script with art by Pablo
Marcos graced the only issue of The Barbarians and confused a lot of
collectors.
Ironjaw wanders onto the "
Ironjaw is taken to the mountain's summit, the ancient cliff
dwellings of the Mutants. Tossed into a dungeon with a female slave, she tells
of how after the Great Wars, her people drove the Mutants onto the mountain,
many centuries ago.
Taken before the Mutant Queen, Ironjaw rejects her advances
and is sentenced to die in the arena.
Ironjaw must prove the superiority of the human race by
rescuing the female slave. In order to do so, he must defeat the 8 foot tall
mutant monster.
Ironjaw manages to defeat the mutant warrior and decides to
spare his life, earning the respect of the Queen... and his freedom.
Then came Ironjaw #1 with story by Mike
Fleisher and art by Mike Sekowsky and Jack Abel with a cover by none other than
Neal Adams! And #2 saw another
The story given here is this:
The first of the Atlas sword-slinging characters, Ironjaw
roams the world in earth's distant, post-apocalyptic future. He's a violent,
amoral wanderer who lives for battle. Hired by rebels to help overthrow a
tyrannical king, Ironjaw discovers his true heritage.
When he was an infant, his mother's lover killed Ironjaw's
father, the true king, and ascended to the throne himself. With the complicity
of the queen, the new king ordered the infant killed, since he would inherit
the throne and depose the usurper upon reaching adulthood. A soft-hearted
stablehand abandoned the infant on a snowy mountainside, rather than kill him.
After killing the tyrant-king, Ironjaw, identified by a
distinctive birthmark as the true heir to the throne, is crowned king. Upon
discovering to his dismay that "...a king cannot fight, or hunt, or steal
or chase wenches...", Ironjaw chooses to slip away in the middle of the
night, abandoning his new kingdom to resume his wanderer's ways.
After a personality-altering interlude in The Barbarians #1,
Ironjaw returns in his 4th and final issue with the first part of his
long-awaited origin story; the tale of how the abandoned infant became the
warrior.
Okay, okay a lot of well established elements here but this
was a good read and Marvel had Conan and Kull so…anyway, you know
now why there were two Ironjaw #1s…there wasn’t as one was The Barbarians #1.
The Atlas Archives site has a great deal more additional
material on the character and, obviously, I highly recommend it.
Behind the Pat Broderick and Neal Adams cover for Planet
of Vampres lurked a story by no-less a personage than Larry Hama and
Pat Broderick was on interior art with Frank McLaughlin. Spacemen. Vampires. Everything except Vampira! This has all the
elements of a good old 1980s sci fi-horror movie.
April 21st, 2010. The crew of the Mars probe Aries VII
returns home after a 5 year voyage. They will return to an earth far different
from when they first left.
After a successful water landing outside of
The crew is soon introduced to the Proctor, the Dome
Administrator. Captain Chris Galland recounts how the Aries VII first lost
contact with Earth. The last message that they received from Mission Control is
that war had been declared between the major powers. The crew assumed the
worst, that controlled nuclear war was raging across the face of the earth. The
astronauts decided to continue to orbit Mars, hoping to hear something from
earth. Soon, critical limitations of life support forced them to return to
earth.
After their meeting with the Proctor, the astronauts are
taken to their quarters. On the way, they encounter a savage being taken to an
"Indoctrination Facility". Screams of terror cause them to
investigate the facility. To their horror, they find an assembly line for
extracting bodily fluids from humans. The People of the Dome are mechanized
vampires. Freeing what savages they can, they destroy the facility. The astronaut
crew is led to freedom by Bruiser Culhane, Warlord of the Bay Ridge assassins.
Captain Galland and his crew soon learn that the savages had
developed immunity to the horrid new diseases that ravaged the land, while the
people of the Dome developed no immunity and were susceptible to the plague.
The Domies extracted a serum from the blood of the savages in order to stay
alive. Like the ancient vampires of lore, the Domies feasted on the blood of
the savages in order to stay alive.
Shortly after escaping the Dome, Bruiser and the astronauts
are confronted by Bad Lenny Siegle of the Myrtle Street Boys. The two gang
leaders will fight to the death with the fate of the astronauts hanging in the
balance.
John Albano wrote issue #2 with its Adams and Giordano cover
and same art team.
Tales of Evil ran for three issues and with these the Marvel
Comics horror comics were well and truly reflected. Larry Lieber provided the covers for #1 and
#2 and the first issue had three strips while #2 and #3 featured only two –the cover
of #3 was by Rich Buckler.
 
Again, the Atlas Archives will give you a full synopsis of
all the stories. The werewolf, the Man-Monster and the Bog-Beast were obvious
attempts at quickly establishing a group of horror characters yet their lives
in print leaves us old fans wondering and dreaming about what might have been!
Larry Hama wrote as well as teamed up with Klaus Janson on
the cover and interiors for Wulf The Barbarian #1 while Larry
Lieber joined in putting the cover for #2 together.
The story-line started thus:
While crossing the
As Wulf dispatches the last of the nine men, he is greeted
by Berithe of the Free Swordsmen Guild and her companions Rymstrydle the Blader
and Zemba, a magician.
Delirious from thirst and blood loss, he attacks the trio,
only to be subdued by the magician Zemba, whose spell puts Wulf into a
well-needed deep sleep.
Wulf awakens in the city of
One of the water merchants, Rasselas, has dabbled in sorcery
and killed his competitor, Melekantis. Not content, he continued to delve deep
into sorcery, causing him to become mad and unleashing strange creatures upon
the city. He then proceeded to empty all the water wells.
The Swordsmen's Guild was offered a fortune in gold for the
head of Rasselas, a bounty that Berithe plans to collect. Wulf agrees to join
them in the attack on Rasselas.
The quartet soon invades the fortress of Rasselas where they
battle their way thru the undead. As they enter the Chamber of Rasselas, they
find him perched atop the water demon, Bel-Shugthra. Berithe throws her sword
at Rasselas and kills him, but his blood now gives life to the monstrous water
demon, Bel-Shugthra.
In order to combat the demon, Wulf must slay the magician,
Zemba, whose blood will bring to life the fire demon, Sri-Amantra, who will
battle the water demon.
Wulf, Berithe and Rymstrydle flee the fortress as the two
titans destroy each other and all around them.
The water has been restored to Rama-Kesh, and Wulf continues
on his quest to kill the sorcerer Mordek.
With #3 Jim Craig capably handled the cover work and Steve
Skeates wrote while Leo Summers drew Wulf’s continuing adventure. Craig’s
artwork was the cover for #4 but things were getting very tough at Atlas. The
last issue had Mike Friedrich on script and for art – “Jim Craig and the Atlas
Bullpen”.
Wulf vanished into the comic book limbo like so many others.
Now what genre is missing….Westerns! Oh yeah, Atlas had one title. It also lasted one issue. Larry Lieber provided the cover art as well
as the story for Kid Cody, Gunfighter with Doug Wildey on art! Steve Skeates wrote while Jack Abel and Al
Milgrom drew the adventure of The Comanche Kid .
Stan Goldberg’s Vicki ran for four issues and in
case you are wondering what his pay-cheque must have been like, well this was
not an original series as all Vicki stories were reprints of Tower Comics Tippy
Teen.
   
War. What is it good for? Nothing….except war comics and
movies and Atlas had Blazing Battle Tales and behind a
beautiful Frank Thorne cover were a trio of stories by John Albano and art by
Pat Broderick and Jack Sparling, Al McWilliams and John Severin. Sadly just the one issue.
However, Savage Combat Tales featuring Sgt.
Stryker’s Death Squad lasted three issues with covert art by Al McWilliams (#1)
Larry Lieber (#2) and Rich Buckler (#3).
Jack Sparling, Al McWilliams, Alex Toth provided art for Archie Goodwin
stories.
 
Atlas was doing everything right to start with but it was
obvious things were going wrong when nothing else appeared after a first, a
third or fourth issue of a title.
Cop shows were also big at the time –as were cop movies so Police
Action appearing should not have surprised anyone! The star was a hard-bitten cop –Sam Lomax:
NYPD written by Jack Younger (Russ Jones) in #1 with Sekowsky and McWilliams on
art. Same art team for all the strips
but Friedrich wrote the story in #2 and #3.
Lieber drew the covers to #2 and #3 while Thorne drew cover art for #3.
The back-up strip was Luke Malone –Manhunter written by Mike
Ploog and drawn by him with assist from Frank Springer. With #2 and #3 Friedrich took over writing
while Ploog and Springer continued on art.
 
I ought to really point out here that I had first seen the
Tiger-man character in the Atlas black and white magazine sized publication Thrilling
Adventure Stories. The contents were far more “PG” –Tiger-man’s
adversary is finished off, graphically, by his own piranha!
The contents were:
Thrilling Adventure Stories #1
Cover - Ernie Colon
Tiger-Man and the Flesh Peddlers
Story - John Albano
Art - Ernie Colon
The Sting of Death
Story - John Albano
Art - Leo Summers
The Kromag Saga: Kromag the Killer
Story - Jack Sparling/Gabe Levy
Art - Jack Sparling
Story - Jeff Rovin
Art - Frank Thorne
Escape from Nine by One
Story - Russ Heath
Art - Russ Heath
Films of Alistair MacLean - text article by Ric Meyers
Doc Savage text article
Thrilling Adventure Stories #2
Cover - Neal Adams
The
Story - Archie Goodwin
Art - Walt Simsonson
The Kromag Saga: The Valley of the Dinosaurs
Story - Gabe Levy
Art - Jack Sparling
Tough Cop
Story - John Albano
Art - Russ Heath
Town Tamer
Story - Steve Mitchell
Art - John Severin
A Job Well Done
Story - Ric Myers
Art - Alex Toth
Robbery - text article by Bernard Michaelson
The Towering Inferno - text article by Carl Macek
All edited, again, by Jeff Rovin. A very busy man at that time as he was busily beavering away on another b&w title
- Weird
Tales of the Macabre and I still have my pristine copies!
The contents for #1 are:
Cover - Jeff Jones
The Demon is Dying
Story - Pay Boyette
Art - Pat Boyette
Time Lapse
Story - Gus Funnell
Art - Leo Duranona
A Second Life
Story - Ramon Torrents
Art - Ramon Torrents
The Cheese is for the Rats
Story - Villanova
Art - Villanova
Tour de Force
Story - Martin Pasko
Art - Leo Summers
Speed Demon
Story - Ernie Colon
Art - Ernie Colon
And issue #2 had a fantastic cover that would have made me
buy the book just for that..I am a comic book tart!
Cover - Boris Vallejo
The Bog Beast
Story - Gabe Levy
Art - Badia Romero
Dr. Mercurio's Diary
Story - Al Moniz
Art - Xirinius
Carrion of the Gods
Story - Pay Boyette
Art - Pat Boyette
Who Toys with Terror
Story - George Kashdan
Art - John Severin
The Staff of Death
Story - Leo Summers
Art - Leo Summers
The Films of Edgar Allen Poe - text article by Karl Macek
There was also Gothic Romances #1 (and only issue) edited by
Cybill St. John with the following contents:
Cover - Elaine Duillo
As Midnight Becomes Morning
Story - Carolyn Weaver
Art - Howard Chaykin
The Devil's Chapel
Story - Vanessa Swynford
Art - Vanessa Swynford
The Black Unicorn
Story - Ruth Macleod
Art - Ernie Colon
The Cruel Cliffs of Malaspina
Story - Nancy Maquire
Art - Harold Shull
Asylum
Story - Marianne Ashley
Art - Neal Adams
Mommy Save Me From the Night Monsters
Story - Ann Caldwell
Art - Russ Heath
The House Where Time Stood Still
Story - Ruby Jean Jensen
Art - Howard Shull
Rovin was editing Devilina another magazine and oddly my
stolen copy of #1 cost £5.00 to replace but no one was selling #2 for less than
£10! Weird but I had my good original
copy!
Contents for #1 are:
Cover - Pulojar
The Atlas Archive site points out that this cover was used a
second time as the cover
to Vampirella #111.
Devilina - Satan's Domain
Story - Ric Estrada
Art - Ric Estrada
The Lost Tomb of Nefertiri
Story - Gabe Levy
Art - Pablo Marcos
Lay of the Sea
Story - Gabe Levy
Art - Leo Duranona
Midnight Muse
Story - Michael Cahlin
Art - Ralph Reese
Merchants of Evil
Story - John Albano
Art - Jack Sparling
William Shakespeare's The Tempest
Story - Martin Pasko
Art - Leo Summers
The Devil's Dungeon - editorial by Jeff Rovin
Filmdom's Vampire Lovers - text article by Gary Gerani
Devilina Pinup - art by Eric Estrada
For #2 the contents are:
Cover - George Torjussen
Devilina - Curse of the Ra Scarab
Story - Ric Estrada
Art - Ric Estrada
Vendetta
Story - John Albano
Art - Frank Thorne
The Devil's Procuress
Story - John Albano
Art - Jack Sparling
The Prophecy
Story - Suso
Art - Suso
Night Creature
Story - John Albano
Art - Leo Summers
Flesh Gordon: The Perils of Flesh - text article by Carl
Macek
1975 was the year of Atlas Comics. That was it until rumours turned to fact in
2011 when it was revealed that Jason Goodman was reviving “the much loved”
1970s characters. I published a couple
of posts on 1970s Atlas and then the new books appeared.
Superb printing and paper…but WTF…Grim Ghost was a mess. A couple
of good covers –variant covers everywhere but what a gods awful mess! And people wonder why Atlas fans won’t really
talk about this!
      
The
      
Wulf was about the best title art and story-wise with a
cameo by Lomax and even Ironjaw.
     
There
was some hope...we had to have hope, right? Atlas Unified was to be
the major cross-over event This is how it was promoted:
“The Grim Ghost,
The artwork was simply AWFUL –the Grim Ghost looked more
like a mummy! The story was…bleh. There
was the compulsory 0 issue followed by #1 and #2 and then nothing. Jason Goodman has told me three times now
that it could still be back. I ain’t holding my breath waiting.
There was so much promise but after criticism Goodman stated
these were not the 1970s characters but reboots. In one last post I asked: “What
Actually Happened To The New Atlas Comics?”
A few people on comic forums had commented that, re. Jason
Goodman and Atlas Comics, people should ask...me!
Look, I did what other people should have done at the time
~I contacted Jason Goodman, Communicated with him a few times since but I am
not working in projects for him and I have no inside info.
Here is what I wrote in May, 2016
So What Actually Happened To The New Atlas Comics?
Well I was asked the above question and to be honest even
the answers you can find online can get confusing. In 2015, Jason Goodman (whose Nemesis Group
joined forces with Arrden to produce the 2010 Atlas revival) told me that there
was still the "possibility" that Atlas could be back.
But there were rumours.
Firstly, that Disney, owners of Marvel Comics which was formerly Atlas
Comics after having been Timely Comics, had taken legal action for using the
Atlas title. As I pointed out on several comic sites, that made no sense.
Disney bosses were ignorant of Marvel having been Timely so they probably had
no idea it was also once Atlas. Then it
was suggested that the fuss was over the Marvel comic Agents of Atlas.
I searched around but there seemed to be no problems coming
from Disney.
Secondly, there was the rumour that a group of creators from
the 1970s Atlas Comics were suing over use of their creations. I asked around
again. No. No truth to that rumour.
So, was it likely that Atlas Comics and the series Atlas
Unified were cancelled because someone else owned the "Atlas Comics"
name? It seemed ridiculous but it turned
out that, indeed, someone had grabbed the name and ....well, this Wikipedia
entry will explain:
"Circa 2010, Martin Goodman's grandson Jason Goodman
announced a partnership with Ardden Entertainment to relaunch Atlas Comics
starting with two "#0" issues featuring the Grim Ghost and Phoenix.
With another character, Wulf the Barbarian, they were the stars of a
miniseries, Atlas Unified, announced in September 2011 for publication that
November.
"Jason Goodman's Nemesis Group Inc. belatedly
discovered that one Jeffrey Stevens had acquired the trademark "Atlas
Comics" for comic books on October 11, 2005. Nemesis filed suit on
September 28, 2010, arguing that Stevens had no demonstrated use of the
trademark, and on March 13, 2012, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board allowed
the case to proceed to trial. The Board ultimately ruled against Goodman, and
on August 10, 2014, Stevens assigned the trademark to Dynamite Characters
LLC."
So when Goodman told me that it was possible that Atlas
Comics would be back he was, probably, being, shall we say, a little
"optimistic"?
But in December, 2015, someone (no, no names) told me that
Goodman was getting Atlas Comics back as a name. I pointed out that unless he paid Jeffery
Stevens a lot of money for the name legally assigned to him he just couldn't. I
was then sent (see why I won't name the person?) a scan of a logo but asked not
to say anything until it all went "legal".
Now, sleazy Bleeding Cool Comics, in February,2016, ran this
story -see the whole item here ~remember that this IS Bleeding Cool:
"Is Martin Goodman’s Grandson Trying To Get The Name Of
Atlas Comics Back?"
Rich Johnson even had the logo in question and goes on to
write:
"... this month (February), the Nemesis Group has filed
paperwork for this logo
"for…Video game cartridges and discs; Video game discs;
Video game software; Video and computer game programs; Computer game software
for use with personal computers, home video game consoles used with televisions
and arcade-based video game consoles; Computer game software for use with
personal computers, home video game consoles used with televisions and
arcade-based video game consoles; Computer programs for video and computer
games; Vinyl covers specially adapted for cell phones, MP3 players, laptops,
computers, portable satellite radios, personal digital assistants, remote
controls, and television satellite recorders. Comic books; Comics; Graphic
novels; Graphic art prints; Graphic art reproductions; Graphic prints; Framed
graphic art reproductions. Graphic T-shirts; Graphic T-shirts; Halloween
costumes. Appliques. Costume masks; Video game machines;
The difference is
Atlas TM Comics. Yeah, I know. But that "TM" can make all the
difference. But it's typical comic industry shenanigans that someone would
sneak in and register the Atlas Comics name without contacting the Goodman
estate and then not use it. From what I
understand, the intention might have been to use the Atlas characters under the
Dynamite-Atlas Comics banner but if the rumour mill is correct that would have
resulted in creators being very unhappy and legal action.
So, if Stevens plans were scuppered back in 2005 you might
ask why when Goodman and Arrden did all the Atlas Comics relaunch press and
news releases as well as interviews, did Stevens not clear his throat and say
"Sorry -you can't. The Atlas Comics
name is mine now"?
Sounds a dirty trick, right?
But nothing in comics surprises me.
What the motivation was or just what was going on behind the scenes we
do not know. There's a suggestion that Stevens wanted to sell the name back to
Goodman but Goodman said "**** you!" and the legal case opened. There are a
Goodman may well be able to adopt the Atlas TM Comics and
that means Atlas could be back. If it does happen I can only hope that better
writers and artists are used and -please- get some of the original creators and
their creations involved not a reboot that fans did not like.
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