Roy Thomas’Landmark

Comics Fanzine

$8.95In the USA

No.132May2015

Art

© D

C C

om

ics.

ARTHURPEDDY

BONUS! SPOTLIGHT ON

1 82658 27763 5

0 4

Vol. 3, No. 133 / May 2015EditorRoy ThomasAssociate EditorsBill SchellyJim AmashDesign & LayoutChristopher DayConsulting EditorJohn MorrowFCA EditorP.C. HamerlinckJ.T. Go (Assoc. Editor)Comic Crypt EditorMichael T. GilbertEditorial Honor RollJerry G. Bails (founder)Ronn Foss, Biljo WhiteMike FriedrichProofreadersRob SmentekWilliam J. DowldingCover ArtistsArthur Peddy or Irwin Hasen,Bernard Sachs, et al.Cover ColoristTom ZiukoWith Special Thanks to:

This issue is dedicated to the memory ofArthur Peddy & Al Feldstein

Alter EgoTM is published 8 times a year by TwoMorrows, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614, USA. Phone: (919) 449-0344. Roy Thomas, Editor. John Morrow, Publisher. Alter Ego Editorial Offices: 32 Bluebird Trail, St. Matthews, SC 29135, USA. Fax: (803) 826-6501; e-mail: roydann@ntinet.com. Send subscription funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial offices. Eight-issue subscriptions: $67 US, $85 Canada, $104 elsewhere. All characters are © their respective companies. All material © their creators unless otherwise noted. All editorial matter © Roy Thomas. Alter Ego is a TM of Roy & Dann Thomas. FCA is a TM of P.C. Hamerlinck. Printed in China. ISSN: 1932-6890

FIRST PRINTING.

ContentsWriter/Editorial: Golden + Silver Anniversary = 75 Years! . . 2A Streak Of Scarlet—A Glimmer Of Green—And The Beating Of Mighty Wings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3Kurt Mitchell’s brief history of The Flash, Green Lantern, and Hawkman (1940-1970).

Remembering Arthur Peddy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31Richard Arndt talks with Michael Posner, stepson of the Golden Age artist.

“The Will Of William Wilson” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44The Flash and Green Lantern in the legendary lost Golden Age tale of the Justice Society.

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt! The Mystery Of The Missing Comic (Part Two) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49More by Michael T. Gilbert on Bob Powell’s AWOL Man in Black issue.

Comic FandomArchive:Al Dellinges–“It’sBeenA Great Trip!” . . 55Bill Schelly introduces the ultimate Kubert fan, recalling a lifetime of fan-publishing.

In Memoriam: Al Feldstein. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63re: [correspondence, comments, & corrections] . . . . . . . . . 67FCA [Fawcett Collectors Of America] #191 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

P.C. Hamerlinck presents Elliot Maggin, John G. Pierce, & Otto Binder.On Our Cover: This issue’s major cover art is a bit of a mystery—but, just this once, we’ll mostly dealwith that mystery in our writer/editorial on the following page. Here, we’ll just note that it was repro-duced from a photocopy of the original art for the cover of All-Star Comics #49 (Oct.-Nov. 1949) thatwas sent years ago to Ye Editor by A/E’s founder, the late Jerry G. Bails, who then owned that art.For some reason, though, the bottom partial-inch of the art got cut off on that photocopy. Since that“Justice Society of America” art spotlighted The Flash and Green Lantern (plus Wonder Woman), itseemed a natural choice to front this issue that deals in large part with the first three decades of thosetwo hero-concepts. The inker has been identified as Bernard Sachs, while the penciling is by eitherArthur Peddy or Irwin Hasen. The Carmine Infantino/Joe Kubert insert of the Silver AgeFlash is from Showcase #4 (Oct. 1956), while the Gil Kane/Joe Giella head of the Hal Jordan GL isfrom an early adventure of that version of the Emerald Gladiator. [Art © DC Comics.] Above: This color illo of the Golden Age Flash and Green Lantern by the latter’s co-creator, MartNodell, was probably done in the 1990s, when Marty was drawing commissions and attendingnumerous comics conventions. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time it’s been printed incolor. [Flash & Green Lantern TM & © DC Comics.]

If you’re viewing a DigitalEdition of this publication,PLEASE READ THIS:

This is copyrighted material, NOT intendedfor downloading anywhere except our

website or Apps. If you downloaded it fromanother website or torrent, go ahead andread it, and if you decide to keep it, DO

THE RIGHT THING and buy a legal down-load, or a printed copy. Otherwise, DELETE

IT FROM YOUR DEVICE and DO NOTSHARE IT WITH FRIENDS OR POST ITANYWHERE. If you enjoy our publicationsenough to download them, please pay forthem so we can keep producing ones likethis. Our digital editions should ONLY be

downloaded within our Apps and at

www.twomorrows.com

Heidi AmashRichard J. ArndtBob BaileyJean BailsDominic BongoJerry K. BoydChristopher BoykoMike BurkeyNick CaputoMike CatronBob CherryShaun ClancyWilliam ColosimoComicBookPlus

(website)Chet CoxJoshua CozineFred DeBoomJeff DeischerCraig DelichJeff DellAl DellingesBetty DobsonJim DotyMichael DunneMark EvanierShane FoleyFrank GiellaJoe GiellaJanet GilbertGolden Age Comic

Book Stories(website)

Arnie GrievesLarry GuidryBill HenleyHeritage Comics

Archives (website)Richard Howell

Nancy ShoresKarlebach

Jim KealyDominique LeonardMark LewisJim LudwigElliot S! MagginDan MakaraWill MeugniotKurt MitchellBart MixonBrian K. MorrisMark MullerWill MurrayKen NadlePalantine News

Network (website)Fred PattenBarry PearlTony PidoneJohn G. PierceMichael PosnerFrancis RodriguezBernice Sachs-SmollerRandy SargentEd SilvermanAnthony SnyderJ. David SpurlockAaron SultanTenth Letter of the

Alphabet (website)Dann ThomasToni TorresJim Vadeboncoeur, Jr.Dr. Michael J.

VassalloHames WareBill WarrenSteven WillisBill Wormstedt

utumn 1939: the dawn of the Golden Age of comic books.Established and newly minted publishers alike are goinginto the business right and left in the wake of the

phenomenal debut of “Superman” the previous year. Among themis All-American Comics, Inc., a fledgling line jointly owned byentrepreneur Max Charles Gaines, the man who a few years earlier,some say, more or less invented the American comic book as weknow it, and Jacob “Jack” Liebowitz, part-owner of Superman’spublisher, Detective Comics, Inc.

Frustrated by his DC partner Harry Donenfeld’s reluctance toexpand their line, Liebowitz approaches Gaines, who has previ-ously packaged titles for other publishers, about establishing asister company that will share printing and distribution costs withDetective while maintaining separate editorial offices and

identities. The two companiesadvertise each others’ booksand, as of AA’s June 1940issues, both lines bear theubiquitous DC “slug”’ on theircovers. AA’s flagship title, All-American Comics, featuresreprints of newspaper comicstrips and original characterslike aviator “Hop Harrigan”and two-fisted servicemen“Red, White, and Blue.” Twoother AA titles, Movie Comicsand Mutt & Jeff, are also on the

AA

A Streak OfScarlet—A Glimmer Of

Green—

3

All-American GuysM.C. Gaines (1894-1947), recently of the McClure Syndicate (left), and DC

accountant/co-publisher JackLiebowitz (1900-2000) joined forces in1939—with Harry Donenfeld’s blessing—

to create the All-American ComicsGroup. The photo of Gaines is from

Amazing World of DC Comics #5 (1975),that of Liebowitz was found online.

The Last Shall Be First!(Top left:) The final Golden Age panels that featured The Flash (seen only in a super-speed blur), Green Lantern, and Hawkman were featured on the last two pages

of All-Star Comics #57 (Feb.-March 1951). Script by John Broome; pencils by Arthur Peddy; inks by Bernard Sachs. Reproduced from Roy Thomas’ bound volumes of the actual comic.

(Top right:) More than a dozen years and a couple of revivals later, two Flashes, two Green Lanterns, and the Golden Age Hawkman shared the cover of JusticeLeague of America #22 (Sept. 1963) with several other heroes of two ages. Art by Murphy Anderson. The editor of both comic books, a dozen years apart, was

the late great Julius Schwartz. Thanks for these and various other comics covers accompanying this article to the online Grand Comics Database (see ad on p. 48).[© DC Comics.]

And The BeatingOf Mighty WingsAnd The BeatingOf Mighty WingsA Brief History Of The Flash,Green Lantern, & Hawkman

(1940-1970)by Kurt Mitchell

newsstands when Gainesand Liebowitz decide toput together a new title,one emphasizing colorfulmystery-men (not yetgenerally called super-heroes).

Gaines turns to hisright-hand man, AA editorand art director SheldonMayer, to determine thespecific contents of thenew comic. Mayer, atalented artist in his ownright whose series about aboy cartoonist, “Scribbly,”is a highlight of All-American, knows a thing ortwo about supermen:according to someaccounts (including his), itwas he who discoveredsample pages of JerrySiegel and Joe Shuster’srevolutionary “Superman”strip during Gaines’ dayswith a newspapersyndicate and recom-mended the feature to DCeditor Vince Sullivan.Although they will neverachieve the popularity oruniversal recognition ofthe Man of Steel, four of

the super-heroesMayer helps developfor All-American willbecome cornerstonesof what comic fans oflater generations willdub the DC Universe.This is the story ofthree of those heroes.(Wonder Womanbeing the fourth, ofcourse.)

The FastestMan Alive!

“Faster than thestreak of the lightningin the sky… swifterthan the speed of thelight itself… fleeterthan the rapidity ofthought… is The Flash, reincarnation of thewinged Mercury… His speed is the dismay ofscientists, the joy of the oppressed—and theopen mouthed wonder of the multitudes!!”

So reads the opening caption of “The Flash,” the eponymouscover feature of Flash Comics #1 (January 1940). The ability to moveat superhuman speed is hardly original (Mercury is but one ofmany mythological speedsters) and Superman counts extraor-dinary speed among his many attributes, but no comic has yet toseize on it as a stand-alone super-power. Enter Gardner F. Fox, amoonlighting lawyer who will describe himself in a 1979 letter as“the very first writer hired to do comic book writing.” Fox’s comics

credits include early episodes of “Batman” (we have him tothank for the Batarang) and (perhaps) the co-creation of “TheSandman.” He and editor Mayer hammer out a plot aboutJay Garrick, who gains super-speed after inhaling “hardwater” fumes in a chem lab accident. The science is suspect,but it serves tidily as a deus ex machina, getting us quickly toour fleet-footed hero. Mayer also has a hand in thecharacter’s design, working with the series’ original artist,Harry Lampert, to give The Flash a colorful costume appro-priate for a modern Mercury, including winged boots andwinged helmet. Lampert, a former inker for the Fleischer

animation studiomore comfortablewith humor thanadventure, yieldsthe art chores toEverett E. Hibbardfollowing thesecond episode.Hibbard will drawthe strip off and onfor the next eightyears, earning a rarebyline alongsideFox.

Early episodes ofthe series are, super-speed notwith-standing, ratherordinary tales of

When Sheldons Clash!All-American Comics editor Sheldon

Mayer (1917-1991, seen at left) and artistSheldon Moldoff (1920-2012) play at

mock fisticuffs in the early 1940s. Afterthe latter returned from World War IImilitary service and Mayer refused to

give him back the “Hawkman” feature,the bad blood became real. This photo

was first published courtesy of Moldoff inAlter Ego, Vol. 3, #4 (Spring 2000), anissue celebrating the first sixty years of“The Flash” and “Hawkman.” It’s still

available from TwoMorrows; check it outfor more rare art and information about

the stars of Flash Comics.

Harry Lampert(1916-2004) drew onlythe first two “Flash”stories before editor

Mayer replaced him asartist, but nonethelessis the visual co-creator

of the concept. Thisphoto, taken while he

was in the Armyduring World War II,

was supplied byLampert to accompanyhis interview in Alter

Ego V3#4, which is stillavailable fromTwoMorrows.

Gardner F. Fox(1911-1986), writer/co-

creator of “The Flash” &“Hawkman,” wouldsoon go on to do the

same duties for “DoctorFate,” “The Justice

Society of America,”“Skyman,” “The Face,”and other major comicbook concepts. Photosupplied by Fox’s latedaughter Lynda some

years ago.

4 A Brief History Of The Flash, Green Lantern, & Hawkman (1940-1970)

No Flash In The Pan!(Right:) Sheldon “Shelly” Moldoff’s cover for Flash Comics #1 (Jan. 1940)—and

(above) the splash panel of that issue’s “Flash” origin, scripted by Gardner F. Foxand drawn by Harry Lampert—and a “Hawkman” panel by Fox and artist DennisNeville—both repro’d from DC’s 1975 tabloid-size reprinting of Flash Comics #1.

[© DC Comics.]

immensely powerful intelli-gence that inhabits the ancientlantern, appoints Alan itschampion. “Power shall beyours,” promises the Flame, “ifyou have faith in yourself … forwill power is the flame of thegreen lantern!” It instructs himto fashion a ring from itssubstance, which, if recharged atthe lantern every 24 hours, willgive him immunity to all metals,as well as the power to fly andwalk through walls. Donning acolorful costume “so bizarre thatonce I am seen, I will never beforgotten,” the newborn super-hero takes his sacred oath for thefirst time: “—and I shall shed mylight over dark evil … for the darkthings cannot stand the light … the light of the Green Lantern!”

The new series’ powerful premise captures the imagination ofits young readers. After all, who wouldn’t want a magic ring thatobeys your every command? Indeed, the ring is the whole show atfirst. Most of GL’s early adventures are prosaic crime dramasenlivened only by the ever more ingenious uses he finds for hispower: melting steel, stalling motors, providing electricity to ablacked-out city, and forming objects—a wall, a blade—of solidlight. The ring also allows him to read minds and compel confes-sions. Its most sinister attribute is seen only once: in All-American#22 (January 1941), a crook dons the ring and is immolated on thespot by the Green Flame. Green Lantern operates out of Metropolisat first, then relocates to Capitol City (a thinly disguisedWashington, DC) after meeting Irene Miller at the New YorkWorld’s Fair in All-American #18 (Aug. 1940). Irene is a secretary atthe Apex Broadcasting System, and soon Alan Scott is workingthere, too. Despite the change in setting, the stories continue tofeed GL a steady diet of cheap crooks and corrupt authorityfigures. Something is missing. The solution comes in the unlikelyform of an irascible little taxi driver with an impenetrable Brooklynaccent… Doiby Dickles.

Brothers In Arms And Strange BedfellowsAs every reader of Alter Ego surely knows, All-Star Comics #3

(Winter 1940) features the debut of the “Justice Society ofAmerica,” comics’ first team of costumed super-heroes. The Flash,Green Lantern. and Hawkman are not only charter members of theSociety, they successively serve as its chairmen. For the most part,their adventures with the JSA have little impact on their solo strips,Shiera Sanders coming into her inheritance in All-Star #6 being thenotable exception (probably because Gardner Fox was writing boththe “JSA” and the “Hawkman” feature in Flash Comics). Anunspoken—and surreal—dictum of the series is that any hero whostars in his own solo title (i.e., Superman and Batman) is too busyfor active duty. Sure enough, the premieres of All-Flash Quarterly #1(Summer 1941) and Green Lantern #1 (Fall 1941) both lead to theirnamesakes yielding their seats at the JSA’s round table to otherworthy heroes. Both will return to active duty in All-Star #24(Spring 1945) and remain with the team through the end of the runin All-Star #57 (Feb.-March 1951). For more information about ourthree heroes’ careers with the Justice Society, see TwoMorrows’four-volume book series The All-Star Companion.

It’s Not Easy Being Green (Lantern)Artist Martin Nodell drew up an initial version of Green Lantern’s origin forAll-American editor Sheldon Mayer circa the turn of 1941—but Mayer quickly

teamed him with already-veteran writer Bill Finger (who’d worked withBob Kane on the creation of “Batman”) to rework the tale. Nodell’s originalversion of one page was printed in A/E #102. Above is a 1989 color drawingNodell did for collector Aaron Sultan, who kindly shared it with us. Aboveleft: Mayer assigned the first Green Lantern cover of All-American Comics(#16, July 1940) to established artist Sheldon Moldoff. For the “GL” storiesfrom All-American #16-38 and the first three issues of Green Lantern, see

DC’s hardcover Golden Age Green Lantern Archives, Vol. 1-2. [© DC Comics.]

“Green Lantern” artist/conceptualizer Martin Nodell (1915-2006, left) & writer/co-creator Bill Finger (1914-1974, right) in the fuzzy photos thatappeared with their bios in Green Lantern #1 (Fall 1941). [© DC Comics.]

A Streak Of Scarlet—A Glimpse Of Green—And The Beating Of Mighty Wings 7

super-speed. As fast as the ScarletSpeedster and infatuated with Iris West,Zoom’s clashes with his heroic adversaryare epic … and personal.

Fortunately, The Flash has no shortageof super-heroic help. Iris’ teenage nephew,Wally West, gains speed powers undercircumstances identical to those that befellBarry Allen and, with Flash’s encour-agement, assumes the identity of Kid Flashin The Flash #110 (Dec. 1959-Jan. 1960).More independent operative than juvenile

sidekick, Wally will star in his own back-up series beginning thefollowing issue, while also frequently teaming with his mentor.Another ally is The Elongated Man, introduced in #112 (May-June1960), a sideshow performer named Ralph Dibny able to stretch hisbody to fantastic lengths. One of the few super-heroes of the erawithout a secret identity, Ralph soon lands his own long-runningsolo series in the back of Detective Comics. Schwartz also pairs Flashwith Green Lantern in a series of stories that create a bond betweenthe Justice League teammates like that between Superman andBatman, right down to the exchange of secret identities.

The Flash #123 (Sept. 1961), featuring thefirst modern appearance of Jay Garrick, theGolden Age Flash, is a landmark issue byany measure. Using the old science-fictionstandby of parallel realities, Julius Schwartzand guest scripter Gardner Fox explain thatBarry and the Justice Leaguers live on“Earth-One,” while Jay and his JusticeSociety cohorts live on “Earth-Two.” Thetwo Scarlet Speedsters battle side by sidemany times, in the pages of Flash and in theannual JLA/JSA crossovers in Justice Leagueof America, beginning with #21-22 (Aug. andSept. 1963) of that title. (For more detailed information about theSilver Age adventures of the Earth-Two heroes, see my articles inAlter Ego, Vol. 3, #93-94.)

Of the initial seventy-five issues of The Flash penciled by co-creator Carmine Infantino (including the four Showcase issues andthe all-reprint Flash Annual #1), all but four feature a super-villain,a guest hero, or both. With two stories featured in most earlyissues, there is room for enough alien encounters, interdimensionaljourneys, bizarre transformations, spy rings, and mobsters toalleviate any potential monotony. Nor do Broome and Infantino

Flash Facts(Left:) An Infantino splash page from The Flash #111 (Feb.-March 1960), inked by Murphy Anderson.

Script by John Broome. Thanks to Bob Bailey.

(Right:) Joe Giella inked most of Infantino’s classic Flash work, including the ill-fated attempt in issue#117 (Dec. 1960) to bring back the Three Dimwits as comedy relief. Script by Gardner Fox. Thanks to

William Colosimo. [© DC Comics.]

Joe Giella(b. 1928) got his start as

an inker in the lateGolden Age, and was amajor DC embellisherduring the Silver Age.He currently draws theMary Worth newspaperstrip. Thanks to Joe and

son Frank.

Murphy Anderson(b. 1926) had been the

artist of the Buck Rogersnewspaper comic stripin the 1950s, and was a

top artist on DC’sscience-fiction titles. Hewould become the first

penciler and inker of theHawkman title.

A Streak Of Scarlet—A Glimpse Of Green—And The Beating Of Mighty Wings 21

figure construction, detailedbackgrounds, and polishedfinish. His gift for depictingthe Hawks against breath-taking vistas, using tall or widepanels to emphasize thefreedom of flight, serves Fox’simaginative scripts well. Thechange seems to do the trick.After a four-issue run in MiS,the Pinioned Paladin is finallyawarded his own bi-monthlyseries with Hawkman #1 (April-May 1964).

The early issues of the newtitle are a tour de force byGardner Fox and Anderson. TheHawks’ exploits send them toexotic locations all over Earth, toThanagar and other planets, tosub-atomic universes, and toparallel worlds, pitting them against winged gorillas, moth-men,intelligent lizards from outer space, ice giants, and figures fromGreek mythology. Fox does not forsake super-villainy, introducingI. Q., a petty crook made super-intelligent by an alien stone; Chac,

an immortal Mayan chieftain armed with extraterrestrialweaponry; The Shrike, the winged prince of another world raisedfrom infancy by Amazonian Indians; and Lion-Mane, an archaeol-ogist turned savage cat-man. Several issues focus on the Hawks’bouts with C.A.W. (The Criminal Alliance of the World), another ofthe ubiquitous super-spy organizations spawned by the mid-’60sJames Bond craze. Past foes like the Manhawks, Matter Master, andShadow Thief return as well, but sci-fi and fantasy remain thestrip’s bread and butter.

Hawkman #4 (Oct.-Nov. 1964) introduces Zatanna the Magician,daughter of the Golden Age hero Zatara, and her quest to find herlong-missing father, a storyline that will weave through most ofJulius Schwartz’s super-hero books before resolving itself in JusticeLeague of America #51 (Feb. 1967). The Atom and Adam Strangealso make appearances, but, alas, there is no team-up with theEarth-Two Hawkman and Hawkgirl. The JLA inducts Hawkman inJustice League of America #31 (Nov. 1964).iv In spite of the extraexposure, Hawkman struggles to hold an audience. It doesn’t help

Hawkman Finally Wins His Wings!Two Silver Age Hawkman firsts—after, of course, his debut in The Brave and

the Bold #34:

(Top left:) The new Feathered Fury got the cover spot when he took over halfof the Mystery in Space title with #87 (Nov. 1963)… with a relatively Earth-

bound adventure. Art in this spot and the next by Murphy Anderson.

(Above:) Partly because of WWII-era paper restrictions, the Golden Age“Hawkman” feature never received its own solo magazine—but the Silver

Age Hawkman #1 debuted with an April-May 1964 cover date, soon after thisfull-page house ad appeared in various DC Comics. Thanks to the Golden

Age Comic Book Stories website. [© DC Comics.]

Let’s Be Original!Anderson’s cover for Hawkman #16 (Oct.-Nov. 1966), reproduced from

a scan of the original art. Courtesy of dealer Mike Burkey, whose ads will be found in this issue on pp. 43 & 66. [© DC Comics.]

A Streak Of Scarlet—A Glimpse Of Green—And The Beating Of Mighty Wings 25

that DC begins encouraging its artists to use smaller art boards,hampering Murphy Anderson’s bravura storytelling, or that theintimate scenes of Carter and Shiera’s personal lives that gave theearly issues such charm are squeezed out by prolonged actionscenes. Schwartz, forced to conclude that Fox and Anderson’s timeis better spent on the new Spectre series, eventually hands responsi-bility for Hawkman over to other editorial sensibilities.

The Times, They Are A-Changin’By the fall of 1966, Julius Schwartz’s once-modern

approach to super-heroes is beginning to look old-fashioned,especially compared to upstart competitor Marvel Comics’line of books. Rather than scrap the story elements that madeThe Flash and Green Lantern bestsellers in the first place,Schwartz changes his titles’ pacing, stretching out fightsequences at the expense of plot, and adds a touch of soapopera. The look of the line changes, as well. Sid Greene, whohas been Gil Kane’s inker since Green Lantern #29 (June1964), assumes the same duties on Justice League of America asof #45 (June 1966) and The Flash with #167 (Feb. 1967). Astaple of Schwartz’s sci-fi titles as both penciler and inker,Greene uses boldly inked outlines and a tastefully appliedpalette of textures to create depth and clarity.

In The Flash #165 (Nov. 1966), Barry Allen and Iris Westwed at last, in a ceremony attended by the entire supportingcast. The happy couple move to the Central City suburbs,and Barry is reassigned to the Labmobile, a van speciallyequipped for performing forensics in the field. The strip hasneeded a boost, and the change in status quo is a welcomeone. Less so is the bizarre revelation in #167’s “The RealOrigin of The Flash” that the lightning bolt that struck Allen

back in Showcase #4 had not beenrandom, but the work of abespectacled nebbish in anoversized robe named Mopee,“heavenly helpmate, initiatetenth class.” Reader reaction toGardner Fox’s It’s a Wonderful Liferiff is mixed, at least as reflectedin the letters page, but over timethe story becomes regarded asone of the biggest misfires in DChistory and is eventually deemedapocryphal. This bump in theroad notwithstanding, the Flashtitle proceeds smoothly until#174 (Nov. 1967) and thedeparture of Carmine Infantino,newly promoted to DC artdirector.

Green Lantern #49 (Dec. 1966)begins as a lackluster encounterwith a new super-foe, TheDazzler, but ends with abombshell. Learning Carol Ferrisis engaged to another man, HalJordan quits Ferris Aircraft andleaves his life in Coast Citybehind. Heartbroken, his confi-dence shaken, Hal moves northto Evergreen City, taking jobs asa charter pilot, an insuranceclaims adjuster, and a toysalesman. Only his role as Green

Lantern continues to give his life meaning, and he plunges into itwith renewed commitment. The best stories of this period focus onthe Green Lantern Corps, such as a two-part battle between theCorps and an army of criminals newly escaped from theGuardians’ prison planet that leaves several Corpsmen dead (#55-56), and the introduction of Guy Gardner, the high school gym

Friends And Foes Alike(Left:) Green Lantern battles his greatest foe—the renegade Lantern known as Sinestro—on the cover of issue #52

(April 1967). Art by Gil Kane & Murphy Anderson. Thanks to Betty Dobson & Bob Bailey. [© DC Comics.]

(Right:) A commission drawing of Green Lantern, Hawkman, and the Silver Age Atom done by longtime GL inker Joe Giella for collector Dominique Leonard. [GL, Hawkman, & Atom TM & © DC Comics.]

Better Late Than…A pair of dramatic late covers by the Silver Age heroes’ initial artists: The Flash #159(March 1966) by Carmine Infantino & Joe Giella… and Green Lantern #69 (Oct. 1969)

by Gil Kane & Dick Giordano. Thanks to Betty Dobson. [© DC Comics.]

26 A Brief History Of The Flash, Green Lantern, & Hawkman (1940-1970)

rthur Peddy (Dec. 26, 1916-May 15, 2002) began his comics career in 1939, illus-trating Western, pirate, and adventure yarns for companies like Fox, Fiction House,and Brookwood. His first regular strip was “The White [by #2, ‘Red’] Panther” in

Fiction House’s Jungle Comics. In 1940 he made the move to Quality Comics, co-creatingthe classic character “Phantom Lady” in Police Comics #1 (Aug. 1941). He worked forQuality through 1942, before making another switch to Hillman, where he worked for severalmonths. After a stint in the military during World War II, Peddy returned to Hillman, wherehe worked on “Airboy” and “The Heap,” among other features. In 1948 he moved to DC,where he spent most of the rest of his comics career. There, he started off drawing “Wildcat”and “The Boy Commandos.” He also did covers for Wonder Woman. Around 1950, he wentonto the book that he became most noted for: All-Star Comics, where he penciled “The JusticeSociety of America,” often drawing the entire nigh-book-length story, usually inked byBernard Sachs. While still working for DC, he did art jobs for St. John Publishing in the1950s, where he got his first experience drawing romance comics. He was also regularly doing

war tales for both DC and Atlas during this time. From 1954 until theend of his comics career, he worked exclusively at DC, with most of hiswork in the later years focused on DC’s various romance titles. Around1967 he left comics behind and moved into television advertising.

Michael Posner, LTC, MC, USA (RET), and his brother Bruce arethe stepsons of Arthur Peddy and the sons of the late Jerry Posner andJoanne Posner-Peddy. Michael and his wife of 46 years live on a workingfarm in the Gettysburg National Park’s “Battlefield Protected Region.”They moved there in 1984 from the U.S. Academy at West Point.Michael is an obstetrician/gynecologist and recently retired after 42 yearsof practice. He and his wife have seven children and fourteen grand-children. He is an avid fisherman and tries to fish every day on theirpond; he is also a deep-sea fishing enthusiast and enjoys surf casting onAssateague Island in Maryland. His son Matthew, recently returnedfrom Afghanistan, is the chief of orthopedics at West Point, following hisfather’s 1976-1984 chairmanship of that department.

This interview was conducted on February 2, 2014.

RICHARD ARNDT: Arthur Peddy was your stepdad, is that right?

MICHAEL POSNER: Yes, he was my stepfather. I don’t knowmuch about his early life. My father passed away in the winter of

Being Peddy(Top:) Arthur F. Peddy in 1937, at age 20-21, at Pratt Institute. Thanks to Mark

Muller & the Tenth Letter of the Alphabet website.

(Above right:) Peddy in later years, with wife Joanne Posner-Peddy on left;between them is Bernice Sachs, wife (later widow) of Peddy’s longtime

partner Bernard Sachs. A fuller version of this photo appeared in A/E #121 withan interview with Bernice Sachs-Smoller (whose last name, alas, was

incorrectly rendered there as “Sachs-Smollet”). Pic courtesy of Bernice.

(Left:) The Peddy & Sachs splash page of All-Star Comics #55 (Oct.-Nov. 1950),one of the best of the Julius-Schwartz-edited Golden Age issues. Script byJohn Broome. Repro’d from Roy Thomas’ bound volumes. [© DC Comics.]

AA

RememberingARTHUR PEDDY

A Talk With The Golden Age Artist’sStepson, MICHAEL POSNER

Interview Conducted & Transcribed by Richard J. Arndt

31

1984. My mom was living in Connecticut. I was in the Army andstationed at West Point with my family. In the spring of 1987, shecame to visit and introduced us to Arthur Peddy. Arthur wassmitten with my mother. They were very friendly. They certainlycommunicated to us that they had been growing close for the lastfew months or so. They married in April of 1987. That’s when Ifirst met his co-worker from DC Comics, Bernard Sachs, and hiswife Bernice. I later met the Sachses on two or three otheroccasions when they visited Arthur. I loved that interview you didwith Bernice Sachs [in Alter Ego #121]—especially the photo thatshowed my mom with Bernard and Bernice. I loved how shedescribed how friendly Arthur and Bernard were, as well as thewives. They really were great together.

As you may remember from Bernice’s article, my mom workedfor “Save the Children,” Paul Newman’s group, for 30 or 35 yearsin Westport, Connecticut. That’s where their main corporate officeis. Mom went all over the world, although her main interest was inSouth America. When she died, there was a memorial ceremony,and the people from “Save” took a portion of her ashes anddistributed them to the countries in South America that she wasmost involved in. That was pretty touching.

Anyway, Arthur would chat with me about his life prior to DCComics. A lot of our discussions centered around his days in theArmy in World War II. He enlisted in 1942 and was assigned to the530th 63rd Signal AircraftWarningBattalion—Company B,19th TacticalCommand, 9thAir Force. Hewas there from1942-1945,stationed inEngland,northern France,Belgium, andparts ofGermany. Hemade the rank oftech sergeant. Hewas a signal man.

The thing thatI was really

impressed with from his Army days was that he made a lot ofdrawings, very good drawings that he did just about everywherehe went. He started them in his initial duty station in Florida andcontinued them in the European Theater. He drew them onmilitary stationary called V-Mail.

RA: Yes, I know those. Very thin paper, almost onion paper or carbon-paper thin.

POSNER: We had something similar in Vietnam when I wasstationed overseas. In Saudi Arabia, too. We had a letter that youcould fold into an envelope. I don’t think it has a special namenow, but in the 1940s it was called V-Mail. These drawings he didduring his service time were really amazing. There must have beenfifty or more of them. I donated about twenty of them to theAmerican Army Heritage Museum at the Army War College inCarlisle, Pennsylvania. They put the artwork on display as part oftheir artifact exhibits of World War II. They hadn’t seen anythinglike what Arthur drew before. The art is really quite neat.

I gave a bunch of them to one of my sons, who’s currently anorthopedic trauma surgeon in the Army. He’s just come back fromAfghanistan. I also gave some to one of my uncles—my mother’sbrother. I still have a bunch of them, though. They’re sketches ofhis buddies—some of them shaving nude, which I thought wasinteresting. Tanks and scenery and things like that.

Arthur left the Army in 1945. If I recall from some of his state-ments, in 1939 he started working in the comics. He was drawingfor a book called Mystery Men Comics…

RA: That would have been for Fox Comics. Victor Fox, the publisher, hada reputation of being quite a character.

POSNER: He didn’t work there long, though. I believe he wasinstrumental in creating “Phantom Lady.” From what he told me,he not only didthe pencilingbut also some ofthe dialogue inthat series.

The editor-in-chief of DCComics sentmy motherand me a

Michael Posner in his home office.

32 A Talk With The Golden Age Artist's Stepson, Michael Posner

Peddy In UniformArthur Peddy with his rifle during World War II—and with some Army buddies during that period (he’s second from the right).

Thanks to Michael Posner.

“The WILL of WILLIAM WILSON”

The Flash & Green Lantern In The LegendaryLost Tale Of “The Justice Society Of America”

by Roy Thomas

t was around 1943 that Gardner Fox scripted the 48-page “JSA” story titled “The Will of William Wilson,” whichthen sat on a shelf for a year or two. Circa 1945, editor Sheldon Mayer (or his story editor, Julius Schwartz)seems to have altered two of its six solo-hero chapters so that they starred returning charter members Flash and

Green Lantern, and the entire tale was drawn by various artists and slated to appear in All-Star Comics #31 in 1946.For one reason or another, however, “Will” never saw the light of four-color day.

Eventually its shelved pages were mostly sliced up and were either burned in the DC incinerator or (thankfully)carted off in the late 1960s by Marv Wolfman or other young staffers, who distributed them to eager collectors.A/E’s editor has made it his task for the past decade and a half to try to locate as much art from this story aspossible; thus far, we’ve amassed originals or copies of nearly half its 48 pages, usually one tier of panels (each tiermaking up 1/3 of a page) at a time. The complete, never-sliced-up 5-page “JSA” intro and the nigh-complete 6-page “JSA” finale have sporadically seen print in color in issues of A/E, beginning in #109; all art that has surfacedto date was printed, in black-&-white, in one of the four volumes of TwoMorrows’ and my All-Star Companionseries.

Individual tiers/rows of panels also survive of the “Flash,” “Green Lantern,” “Atom,” and “Dr. Mid-Nite”chapters (though nothing from those of “Hawkman” or “Johnny Thunder”), in which the heroes individually seekout the “impossible” items named in the “last will and testament” of the tale’s title… and art from the “Flash” and“GL” adventures follows, as colored especially for A/E by collector/artist Larry Guidry. Those segments’ 2/3-of-a-page symbolic splash panels were probably sliced up and thrust into the flames nearly half a century ago… but thebottom tier of “page 1” of the “Flash” section is reprinted below. It was drawn by Martin Naydel, also the artist ofboth full-JSA chapters. (Nearly all the non-splash “Flash” art still exists, mostly as tiers sold to RT by the late MarkHanerfeld some years back.) The Scarlet Speedster’s “impossible” assignment: to retrieve the sword of the world-conquering Genghis Khan…!

II

44[A

rt ©

DC

Com

ics.

]

[Art

& S

tory

© D

C Co

mic

s.]

49

[Pages © Harvey Publications or successors in interest.]

The Mystery Of The Missing Comic! (Part 2)

by Michael T. Gilbert

was a teenager when I first made the acquaintance of TheMan in Black Called Fate. Or Mr. Twilight. Or perhaps youknow him as... Death.

No, not the real Grim Reaper, but the Harvey company’slong-running comic book series. Sometime in 1965, I found thestrip hidden in the back of a late-’40s Green Hornet comic.

It was love at first sight! Bob Powell’s art on the strips wasmasterful, full of lush Eisneresqe black inks and dynamiclayouts.

The stories were great, too: short morality tales where a tinytwist of Fate forever alters people’s lives. The Man in Blackhimself was stern, but fair. If he had to claim the life of someoneinnocent, he felt bad. Sometimes his comic foils, Cupid andVenus, thwarted him. Love conquers all, and stuff like that.

I searched out more “Man in Black” stories and foundanother three in issues of Green Hornet, each one a graphicmasterpiece.

Years later, I discovered that Fate really got around, with

stories in Harvey’s All-New Comics, Front Page Comics, Strange StoryComics, and even an issue of Terry and the Pirates. In the late ’50s, heeven had four issues of his own title.

But I didn’t have a clue to any of this in 1965, and no way tofind the books if I had. So imagine my surprise, a few months later,when I spotted a new comic from Harvey starring my belovedMan in Black!

The actual title of the anthology comic was Thrill-O-Rama #1,but Fate’s name was bigger than the logo. The first issue had threesci-fi and supernatural stories, but “The Man in Black” was themain feature—at least for that issue. The art was sparer thanPowell’s 1940s work, but his drawings of faces and figures werestill masterful, and the storytelling remained top-notch.

Two more Thrill-O-Rama issues followed, and then... nothing.Harvey’s line had been launched amidst a tidal wave of interest incomics, thanks to the popular 1966 Batman TV show. But thegeneral public’s short-lived love affair didn’t translate into sales forother characters. Harvey quickly decided to stick with Richie Rich

II

Before And After!When Michael T. Gilbert discovered Bob Powell’s unlettered, unpublished “Man

in Black” preview page (seen at left) on the Heritage Comics website, he decided to complete it, 46 years after the fact (see above art & text.).

[© 2014 Harvey Comics or its successors in interest.]

50 Mr. Monster's Comic Crypt!

EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION:When Roy suggested I do aninterview with Al Dellinges—perhaps best known as the ghost

artist in some issues of DC’s Tor series of the 1970s, and asthe publisher of Near Mint magazine—I was all for it. Alhad even done a little work for Roy’s All-Star Squadronin 1985.

Shortly after broaching the idea with Al himself, Ireceived an envelope from him full of photos, artwork, andan autobiographical article, appended with a note that readin part: “I really doubt that I would make a good subjectfor a feature in Alter Ego, as I didn’t even discover comicfandom until the late 1960s, and most people would haveno idea who I am. But, if you are determined to do so,you’re welcome to run the enclosed biographical sketch.” Iassured him that, while his “story” is different from thoseof most of the other people I’ve written about or inter-

viewed for CFA,readers wouldwelcome the oppor-tunity to learn abouthim and the uniqueway he approaches hisinterest in comic art.

In order to fill insome gaps in the piece,I interpolated bits of atelephone interviewwith Al on January21, 2008, and incorpo-rated material fromother things he had

published in some of his books. A long time in the making, I’mdelighted this piece has finally made its way into the pages of AlterEgo. —Bill Schelly.

was born in 1932 in San Francisco, and discovered comicbooks and the Sunday funnies around 1940. Prince Valiant andFlash Gordon were my favorites. I tried to copy the artwork,but found it much too difficult. I settled for coloring books

instead, which were very popular with youngsters during WorldWar II.

Soon after that, I started collecting comic books. I didn’t reallyhave favorites, although I did like The Spectre’s green and whitecostume a lot. I was different from a lot of kids, I guess, becauseI rarely read the stories. I just picked up the ones that had goodart. And, as I got older, I found it was easier to copy the artworkthat I liked. However, my general drawing skills had notimproved, and trying to study the basics didn’t help at all. I justhad a lot of trouble with anatomy. Copying art was fun;studying art was work and produced no satisfaction.

I soon realized you either had to have a special spark, or youhad to reach a certain point in your life when you could under-

Al Dellinges: “It’sBeen a Great Trip!”

The Artist, Editor, Publisher, & Kubert Fan Remembers!

by Al Dellinges

A Man And His Hawks(From top of page:) Al Dellinges in 1981, and as an aspiring artist in

his home studio in 1949—plus a copy of the classic 1946 masks of Hawkman and Hawkgirl, based on artwork by Joe Kubert, and

hand-colored by Al. [Hawkman TM & © DC Comics.]

CFACFA

II

55The Comic Fandom Archive Presents...

stand things likehuman anatomy.

What I did learn inhigh school was how to

paint signs, because we did alot of posters for footballgames and such. I found I

liked it and it came easily tome. I loved lettering with a

brush. Afterhigh school, I spent the

next ten years letteringtruck doors and windows,

and doing posters as a sidejob.

My problem in progressing as a realisticartist is that I never got the right foundation. Inever did learn the basics of anatomy andsuch. I think the only way I could have madeit as an artist in, say, the comic strip field, wasif I had been taken under the wing of asuccessful professional, and taught the tricksof the trade. Needless to say, that neverhappened. I did, however, receive an encour-aging letter from Alex Raymond.

I continued doing art copy work as ahobby, because I enjoyed it. It was relaxingand fulfilling, and then became an addiction,too. I couldn’t help it—I’d see something Iliked, and I had to copy it. It didn’t matterhow long it took. I’d lose track of time. Icopied all kinds of comic book covers. Then,in high school, I discovered the work of JoeKubert.

A Magnificent ObsessionI became obsessed with Kubert’s art.

Originally I loved his work on the“Hawkman” strip in Flash Comics, especiallyhis early period on it.

I discovered Kubert’s art in a copy of FlashComics #76, when I was about 14 in 1946. Iwas on my way home from school andstopped at the local barber shop to get ahaircut. As I waited my turn, I picked up thiscomic book and began to flip through thepages, from the back cover to the front. Ialways start at the back of the book because Ifind it easier to turn the pages. The last pageof the book was the last page of the“Hawkman” story that Kubert had illustrated.[NOTE: The story was titled “The CrazyquiltCrimes.” —Bill.] The artwork was stunning,and I quickly tried to check out the rest of thestory. But, before I could finish it, it was myturn in the barber’s chair.

After the haircut, I left the shop to continuemy way home, but without the copy of Flash

Comics. I thought, “Why didn’t I take the comic book with me?” AllI could think about was the artwork in that story. The next dayafter school, I ran back to the shop to get that book, and fortu-nately, it was still there. I asked the barber if I could buy the bookand he said sure, so off I went with this visual treasure under myarm. I couldn’t wait to get home and dissect the panels in eachpage. I can’t tell you how much I loved that artwork, and still dowith just as much intensity.

Soon I was searching out other comic books with Joe’s artwork.

A Message From The MasterAl received this encouraging letter from Alex Raymond in 1952, when he asked the artist how to break

into syndicated strips. The creator of Flash Gordon was doing the newspaper strip Rip Kirby at the time.

Obsessed with KubertSuch was Al’s devotion to Kubert, and his skill with India ink (and water colors), that he has producedmany illustrations based on panels in his favorite “Hawkman” stories. [Hawkman TM & © DC Comics.]

56 Comic Fandom Archive

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following pieceappeared Sunday, July 13, 2014, on thewww.newsfromme.com website of comics/

TV writer Mark Evanier. Our thanks to Mark for allowing us to reprintit here, and to Brian K. Morris for a typing assist.]

hen Al Feldstein died at the end of April, I was tooswamped with work to write a long piece about him. Alwas obsessive about meeting deadlines, so I used that

as an excuse to defer this piece.

Al was a fascinating, talented man whose career more or lessdivided into three acts….

Act One: Bill Gaines and Al Feldstein in 1950Act One came when he was writer-editor of most of the EC

Comics from 1948 to 1955. Before that, he was a journeyman comicbook artist—not a particularly great one—who was, like most,trying to make a living in a business that seemed stacked againstthe guys who created the product. Publishers paid X dollars apage. An artist could, if he worked long hours, produce Y numberof pages per week. X times Y was not a bad living wage… but ithas never been the American Dream to be content with “not a badliving wage” for your entire life and how long can you work longhours, anyway?

It was especially not satisfactory to those who grew up, as Aldid, in the Depression. Another of those men, a fine artist namedJim Mooney, said this to me one time in an interview:

If I put in a sixty-hour week at the board, I could usuallyfinish seven or eight pages a week. That’s pencils and inks.That paid decently. I could support a family on that as longas my health didn’t falter and thepublisher didn’t go under. I wasnervous about relying on those twothings. We all were. I wanted to getahead, to get some cushion in thebank so I wouldn’t be in trouble ifthe work suddenly stopped or if Igot sick. Hell, I just wanted to beable to cut back to forty hours aweek. But, doing comics, theredidn’t seem to be a way.

That was the dilemma that Mooneyfaced, that Feldstein faced, that they allfaced: How do you parlay this thing youcan do into some sort of meaningfulfinancial security? Feldstein took a giantstep in that direction in the late ’40swhen he connected with William M.Gaines, publisher of EC Comics. Hebecame Gaines’ main editor, and theyconcocted one of the best-selling linesof comics at the time—Tales from the

Crypt, Crime SuspenStories, and all the rest. Gaines made moneyand some of that trickled down to Feldstein.

They were good comics, some of the finest ever done. And allthe time, Feldstein was looking for what he might do next, whatmight pay even better. Because, like everyone, he wasn’t contentwith just making a weekly wage. He wanted that cushion in thebank. He wanted to amass enough funds to see himself and hisfamily through emergencies and for them to live better. He alsothought it might be nice to have enough money that he couldsomeday retire.

One of the interesting things to me about those comics is that allthe artists in them signed their work. That was not true at anyother comic company of the day. Some companies discouraged[signing work], but even at the ones that didn’t care, most artistsdid not sign what they drew. EC did encourage it and even didlittle spotlight pages on their artists, promoting them.

Still, in marked contrast to what Stan Lee would do less than adecade later, Feldstein did not put his name on what he wrote. Heauthored something like 80% of the stories that ran in the comicshe edited, but he didn’t slap “Written by Al Feldstein” on any ofthem in the color comics. He mentioned it from time to time deepin the letter pages, so it wasn’t a secret. He just didn’t call a lot ofattention to that because, you know, that was just his current job.

He had fantasies of getting into something else, perhaps someother form of publishing that paid a lot better and offered morepossibilities of getting rich. Maybe, if and when that opportunitypresented itself, he’d want people to forget he’d written The Vaultof Horror. There were some best-selling novelists around then whoquietly omitted from their bios that they’d once scripted comic

About Al Feldstein...A Reminiscence Of A Comics Legend In Three Acts

by Mark Evanier

A EA E//WW

In Memoriam 63

On EC Street(Above:) Al Feldstein (1925-2014, on right)and EC publisher/managing editor William M. Gaines during the color comics’ heyday.

(Right:) The splash page of a Graham Ingels-drawn story from Tales from the Crypt #35

(April-May 1953); story by Gaines (plot) & Feldstein (script). The latter is repro’d from

the hardcover The EC Archives: Tales from the Crypt, Vol. 4. [Page © William M. Gaines,

Agent, Ltd.]

tto Oscar Binder (1911-1974), the prolific science-fiction andcomic book writer renowned for authoring over half of the MarvelFamily saga for Fawcett Publications, wrote Memoirs of a

Nobody in 1948 at the age of 37, during what was arguably the mostimaginative period within the repertoire of “Captain Marvel” stories.

Aside from intermittent details about himself, Binder’s capriciouschronicle resembles very little in the way of anything that is indeedautobiographical. Unearthed several years ago from Binder’s file materialsat Texas A&M University, Memoirs is self-described by its author as“ramblings through the untracked wilderness of my mind.” Binder’spotpourri of stray philosophical beliefs, pet peeves, theories, and anecdoteswas written in freewheeling fashion and devoid of any charted course—other than allowing his mind to flow with no restricting parameters. Theabridged and edited manuscript—serialized here within the pages ofFCA—will nonetheless provide glimpses into the idiosyncratic andfanciful mind of Otto O. Binder.

In this 13th excerpt, entitled “Peepholes into the Past,” Otto sharessome intriguing memories from his life—including one incident he hadwith a desperate comic book artist. — P.C. Hamerlinck.

his chapter starts off with reminiscences of my life. Do all ofus have certain vivid and undying memories that stand outagainst the dim backdrop of our past? I think so. Often they

are just little things. Things so trivial and meaningless that it seemsimpossible they should survive. Each of you has such a series ofmemories, like pictures strung along a movie reel. They flashbefore our minds at odd moments, and startle us by theirvividness.

I still remember the day, as a boy, when I had my first maltedmilk. I remember its flavor (cherry)… its slightly-bent straw… andI can picture the girl who served it to me. The sweet, nectar-liketaste of it hit me like a ton of bricks. Now why should a ridiculouslittle incident like that stick in my mind as if I had seen an atomicbomb drop?

I was 22. It was the Depression. I was jobless. Who wasn’t? Iwent to spend the summer on a farm in northern Wisconsin withfriends. It was rugged country, less suited for farming than fishingand hunting. One day my friend Matt and I walked seven milesinto a forest to fish and hunt. At dawn, we trudged our way home,weary, grimy, cold, hungry. When we arrived back at the farm Icollapsed on the grass. I didn’t move the rest of the day. And yet, avivid memory sticks out to this day, a sensation I never had before.I slept soundly that whole day, but some part of me was still awakeand took in all that went on around me. Nothing like it everhappened to me again.

There are other much more important events inmy life, such as my wedding day, the death of myfather, Pearl Harbor. Yes, I remember those thingsnaturally, but they don’t stand out particularly.They have blended back into a sort of formlesscurtain of the hazy past. But that one day that Islept, yet was awake, stands out as vividly as if ithad happened yesterday.

In the Ten Commandments of a writer, one lawstates: “Thou Shalt Not Use Coincidence.” Editorsthrow up their hands in horror if you dare submita story in which something happens by sheercoincidence. If it isn’t relatable or true to life, theybleat. Everything has to have a cause and effect.Things just don’t happen because they happen.

Is that so? Perhaps all of you at one time oranother have been absolutely amazed and stunned at someunbelievable coincidence that happens—just because it happens.Right? Let me tell you of one instance of mine.

I once had a cold—the cold to end all colds, so bad that Ibecame voiceless for one day. All I could get out was a low,

Art

©20

15 M

ark

Lew

is

Part XIIIAbridged & Edited by P.C. Hamerlinck

OO

72

Penny For Your Thoughts, Mr. Binder?Otto Binder crafted the early “Mr. Scarlet and Pinky” tale “Crimes For aPenny!” in November of 1941 — the same year he began writing comicsscripts for Fawcett. By the time the story was published (in America’s

Greatest Comics #2, Feb.-May ’42; art by Phil Bard), Binder was already afew weeks into a 6-month editorial position he accepted with Fawcett

before returning to freelance writing. And the rest is history! [Mr. Scarlet TMand © DC Comics.]

TT

ALTER EGO #13275 YEARS of THE FLASH and GREEN LANTERN (a crossoverwith BACK ISSUE #80)! INFANTINO, KANE, KUBERT, ELIAS,LAMPERT, HIBBARD, NODELL, HASEN, TOTH, REINMAN,SEKOWSKY, Golden Age JSA and Dr. Mid-Nite artist ARTHURPEDDY’s stepson interviewed, FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT in Mr.Monster’s Comic Crypt, BILL SCHELLY on comics fandom his-tory, and more!

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95(Digital Edition) $3.95

http://twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1183

IF YOU ENJOYED THIS PREVIEW,CLICK THE LINK TO ORDER THIS

ISSUE IN PRINT OR DIGITAL FORMAT!