Peerless Power of Comics!

While early comic book fanzines included contributions by professional artists such as Carmine Infantino, Jack Kirby, Joe Kubert, Russ Manning and Paul Reinman, none were as prolific as Steve Ditko. The talented artist took an interest in these unique publications, created by a dedicated cadre of teenagers, young adults and older fans. Often falsely categorized as "reclusive", Mr. Ditko actually embraced fandom. The many drawings seen here present another side of the man, consisting of a generosity of spirit and an appreciation of the creativity and freedom the fanzines provided.                                                   Alter Ego # 6, Winter 1963-64 Alter Ego was one of the earliest comic book fanzines, originated by Jerry Bails and continued by Ronn Foss and Roy Thomas. Steve Ditko made his  fanzine debut with its sixth issue, illustrating a letter ...

The unconditional love of a dog for its master is a universal experience. As such, it is no surprise that the relationship between human and hound has always been part of our culture; from stories in books, films and television to imagery in photography, paintings and - of course - comics. In comic strips alone one can find a number of examples, including  Tige ( Buster Brown ); Sandy ( Little Orphan Annie ); Queenie ( Dondi ) and Snoopy ( Peanuts ). In comic books dogs appeared or starred in numerous features, from adaptations of four legged movie stars ( Rin Tin Tin;   Lassie)  to   new strips ( Rex, the Wonder Dog) and even companions to popular heroes   ( Superboy's pup, Krypto; Batman and Robin's adopted dog, Ace).  MGM's Lassie # 13, October-December 1953. Cover painting by the talented Dell/Western artist Mo Gollub, whose artwork adorned the covers of the title's initial 36 issues. Image from the Grand Comic Book Database.  Lassie # 47, October-...

Fifty years ago this month - on June 9th, 1966, to be precise -  Marvel Tales # 4 was distributed to candy stores amid a vast array of comic books vying for attention. It got mine. While visiting my Grandparent's in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, my older brother John and I took a walk to the corner ice cream parlor, run by  a Louie Dumbrowski type (the harassed proprietor of the old  Bowery Boys  comedies). Having collected comics for a few years, John  perused the magazine racks, as he often did, searching out a few to purchase. One of those was  Marvel Tales  # 4. The color scheme was striking; a purple logo with red highlights and a bold yellow background, topped off with small cover reproductions of  Amazing Spider-Man  # 7;  Journey into Mystery  # 86;  Strange Tales  # 102 and  Tales to   Astonish  # 39. At six years old the comic was a hypnotic draw to me, and one of the earliest I reca...