For years I believed that the psychological advice strip Let's Explore Your Mind was drawn by Timely/Atlas and Cracked regular Richard Doxsee, based on the extreme similarity to his Cracked style. Then I bought two originals from someone who told me he was told they were by Judge Parker artist Dn Heilman. And the similarity to his (later) style is very clear too. But would Heilman be able to do a daily and sunday panel at the same time as doing the daily and Sunday Parker? Well... if he had an assitant on the panel just as he had one on the Judge...
Showing posts with label Harold LeDoux. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Harold LeDoux. Show all posts
Saturday, February 29, 2020
Digging Deep
Sunday More As You Like It Day
For years I believed that the psychological advice strip Let's Explore Your Mind was drawn by Timely/Atlas and Cracked regular Richard Doxsee, based on the extreme similarity to his Cracked style. Then I bought two originals from someone who told me he was told they were by Judge Parker artist Dn Heilman. And the similarity to his (later) style is very clear too. But would Heilman be able to do a daily and sunday panel at the same time as doing the daily and Sunday Parker? Well... if he had an assitant on the panel just as he had one on the Judge...
For years I believed that the psychological advice strip Let's Explore Your Mind was drawn by Timely/Atlas and Cracked regular Richard Doxsee, based on the extreme similarity to his Cracked style. Then I bought two originals from someone who told me he was told they were by Judge Parker artist Dn Heilman. And the similarity to his (later) style is very clear too. But would Heilman be able to do a daily and sunday panel at the same time as doing the daily and Sunday Parker? Well... if he had an assitant on the panel just as he had one on the Judge...
Friday, July 20, 2012
Old Comics Never Die, They Just Fade Away
Friday Comic Book Day.
Heroic was a curious comic book, filled with short stories (sometimes even one page)about normal people dping heroic stuff. Lots of stories about kids saving other kids from drowning or mom from a fire or a car accident or stuff falling from hifg buildings. Very repetative and very dull. The only saving grace for us collectors is the fact that certain name creators had their start there or filled some time doing a page or two or three. Best know is the earliest appearances of Alex Toth work and the short masterpieces Frank Frazetta threw off (especially in the later war issues). But going through a new batch of scans from John Vandeboncoeur's collection (available from the online Digital Comic Book Museum) I noticed many more familiar names than I had ever thought. Some of the regulars include later Judge Parker artist Harold LeDoux and early fifties stalward Bill Walton. But there are also pages by Alfonso Green, H. G. Peters and these guys...
How about Gil Kane?
Al Williamson in some of his earliest work.
More Al Williamson (signed on the last page with AW).
A cover by... looks familiar... let's look inside...
.. where there is a story that JVJ identifies as being by Prins Namor's daddy, Bill Everett. And look at those girl's face on the second page... I think he is right. He also identiefies the cover as Everett's.
More Williamson and this time John says ot is probably inked by Frazetta.
And this is what Frazetta looks like on his own.
Another Timely artist (or at that time, on his way to become one), Tony DiPreta.
Three by Harold LeDoux/
Frank Frazetta again.
And we'll end with LeDoux.
Pretty weird set, huh? These days it wouldn't evne pay to go round to get the script, but apparently that's what these guys did... you' almost call it heroic.
Friday Comic Book Day.
Heroic was a curious comic book, filled with short stories (sometimes even one page)about normal people dping heroic stuff. Lots of stories about kids saving other kids from drowning or mom from a fire or a car accident or stuff falling from hifg buildings. Very repetative and very dull. The only saving grace for us collectors is the fact that certain name creators had their start there or filled some time doing a page or two or three. Best know is the earliest appearances of Alex Toth work and the short masterpieces Frank Frazetta threw off (especially in the later war issues). But going through a new batch of scans from John Vandeboncoeur's collection (available from the online Digital Comic Book Museum) I noticed many more familiar names than I had ever thought. Some of the regulars include later Judge Parker artist Harold LeDoux and early fifties stalward Bill Walton. But there are also pages by Alfonso Green, H. G. Peters and these guys...
How about Gil Kane?
Al Williamson in some of his earliest work.
More Al Williamson (signed on the last page with AW).
A cover by... looks familiar... let's look inside...
.. where there is a story that JVJ identifies as being by Prins Namor's daddy, Bill Everett. And look at those girl's face on the second page... I think he is right. He also identiefies the cover as Everett's.
More Williamson and this time John says ot is probably inked by Frazetta.
And this is what Frazetta looks like on his own.
Another Timely artist (or at that time, on his way to become one), Tony DiPreta.
Three by Harold LeDoux/
Frank Frazetta again.
And we'll end with LeDoux.
Pretty weird set, huh? These days it wouldn't evne pay to go round to get the script, but apparently that's what these guys did... you' almost call it heroic.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Softly, softly
Thursday Story Strip Day.
The new stack of Sunday pages I recieved this week does not only include funny strips, of course. No I usually collect my mor serious stuff until I can show you a complete storyline. But here are two samples, I'd like to share, with possibly more to come.
I start off with the introduction of Mary Perkins and here friends on Leonard Starr's On Stage in februari 1957. My guess is these drawings were taken from the presentation package, as they do not come from the first page (on view in the excellent On Stage reprint series from classicomicspress).
The second thing I would liek to show is a sample of Dan Heilman's Judge Parker. In a recent interview in Alter Ego Geilman's successor on the strip Harold Ledoux trashed Heilman as a horrible human being who let his assistant (LeDoux) do all the work while taking the glory for himself. When I started looking at Heilman's strip before JUdge Parker, The American Adventure, I noticed how much more I liked it than I thought I would. I had written off Judge Parker as a wooden and dull strip in a uninteresting style. But after going back to the early years, I found that the Judge was actually very well drawn, back when Heilman was still ding it. And as for LeDoux story, that he did all the work, while Heilman grabbed the fame... as far as I can see the strip was being done by Heilman himself pretty much until LeDoux took over in the early sixties. As can be seen in this sample from 1957.
Thursday Story Strip Day.
The new stack of Sunday pages I recieved this week does not only include funny strips, of course. No I usually collect my mor serious stuff until I can show you a complete storyline. But here are two samples, I'd like to share, with possibly more to come.
I start off with the introduction of Mary Perkins and here friends on Leonard Starr's On Stage in februari 1957. My guess is these drawings were taken from the presentation package, as they do not come from the first page (on view in the excellent On Stage reprint series from classicomicspress).
The second thing I would liek to show is a sample of Dan Heilman's Judge Parker. In a recent interview in Alter Ego Geilman's successor on the strip Harold Ledoux trashed Heilman as a horrible human being who let his assistant (LeDoux) do all the work while taking the glory for himself. When I started looking at Heilman's strip before JUdge Parker, The American Adventure, I noticed how much more I liked it than I thought I would. I had written off Judge Parker as a wooden and dull strip in a uninteresting style. But after going back to the early years, I found that the Judge was actually very well drawn, back when Heilman was still ding it. And as for LeDoux story, that he did all the work, while Heilman grabbed the fame... as far as I can see the strip was being done by Heilman himself pretty much until LeDoux took over in the early sixties. As can be seen in this sample from 1957.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Heil Parker
Thursday Story Strip Day.
I have been having some trouble with my new computer. Whenever I try to upload stuff to Blogger it freezes, no matter what the size of the file. I had accidentally stepped on my old laptop and cracked the screen and bought a new version. I uploaded the content from my Apple Timemachine and am essentially working on the same system, same computer, same basic data as the old one, except that the housing is a bit bigger now. Still, something must be wrong, since I still can't fix the problem.
As I still have my old cracked comuter here as well (although it will be going in repair to be used by my wife), I downloaded all files I needed for today and tomorrow, so I can at least upload from there (here). I will try and fix the new computer this weekend and hope to be back with more goodies soon.
So, for today I have a good one. Everyone who liked the posts about obscure and semi-obscure strips by former Milt Caniff assistants and imitators working in his style, like Ray Bailey, Alex Kotzky ("Duke" Handy) and George Tuska, will be surprised by this one.
I have always liked Dan Heilman's Judge Parker. I have never scanned any of them for you, because I have so many of them and the tast seemed daunting. Also, I did not have my comics in order and didn't know if I could ever find a run complete enough to not only show you the art, but also give you an opportunity to read a complete story. Heilman drew Parker in a vaguely Caniff-inspired style, which I like a lot. Maybe not as flashy as the real thing, but still pretty nice. Heilman's later assistant LeDoux has recently stated in an interview in Alter Ego Heilman was a real bastard and let him do all the work from pretty early on. I have my doubts about that. Heilman did a good job when LeDoux wasn't there yet and when LeDoux took over the strip, it changed style quite dramaticly... and not for the best in my opinion. In fact, it is the stiffness of LeDoux' style in the later years that has made me so surprised at the quality of the early years.
Anyway, this is not a preamble to me showing you some Judge Parker. I may still do that, but here is a strip Heilman did before he started Judge Parker. The american Adventure was a historical strip (not the only one of it's kind, but probably the first) in which a uncle Sam type character told two kids stories about famous figures from America's past. The first story is about Captain John Smith (and Pocohontas) and takes 12 weeks. I have decided to cut the story in half, although that does mean you will only get one of the many Sundays I have of this series (and which prompted me to find the accompanying dailies from NewspaperArchive).
To start it all off, here are the cover of a book Heilman did in the early sixties (just before retiring from the Judge) and a bio from the same book. And indeed, he doesn not mention LeDoux.
Strip missing.
s
Thursday Story Strip Day.
I have been having some trouble with my new computer. Whenever I try to upload stuff to Blogger it freezes, no matter what the size of the file. I had accidentally stepped on my old laptop and cracked the screen and bought a new version. I uploaded the content from my Apple Timemachine and am essentially working on the same system, same computer, same basic data as the old one, except that the housing is a bit bigger now. Still, something must be wrong, since I still can't fix the problem.
As I still have my old cracked comuter here as well (although it will be going in repair to be used by my wife), I downloaded all files I needed for today and tomorrow, so I can at least upload from there (here). I will try and fix the new computer this weekend and hope to be back with more goodies soon.
So, for today I have a good one. Everyone who liked the posts about obscure and semi-obscure strips by former Milt Caniff assistants and imitators working in his style, like Ray Bailey, Alex Kotzky ("Duke" Handy) and George Tuska, will be surprised by this one.
I have always liked Dan Heilman's Judge Parker. I have never scanned any of them for you, because I have so many of them and the tast seemed daunting. Also, I did not have my comics in order and didn't know if I could ever find a run complete enough to not only show you the art, but also give you an opportunity to read a complete story. Heilman drew Parker in a vaguely Caniff-inspired style, which I like a lot. Maybe not as flashy as the real thing, but still pretty nice. Heilman's later assistant LeDoux has recently stated in an interview in Alter Ego Heilman was a real bastard and let him do all the work from pretty early on. I have my doubts about that. Heilman did a good job when LeDoux wasn't there yet and when LeDoux took over the strip, it changed style quite dramaticly... and not for the best in my opinion. In fact, it is the stiffness of LeDoux' style in the later years that has made me so surprised at the quality of the early years.
Anyway, this is not a preamble to me showing you some Judge Parker. I may still do that, but here is a strip Heilman did before he started Judge Parker. The american Adventure was a historical strip (not the only one of it's kind, but probably the first) in which a uncle Sam type character told two kids stories about famous figures from America's past. The first story is about Captain John Smith (and Pocohontas) and takes 12 weeks. I have decided to cut the story in half, although that does mean you will only get one of the many Sundays I have of this series (and which prompted me to find the accompanying dailies from NewspaperArchive).
To start it all off, here are the cover of a book Heilman did in the early sixties (just before retiring from the Judge) and a bio from the same book. And indeed, he doesn not mention LeDoux.
Strip missing.
s
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