TODAY IN COMIC BOOK HISTORY15515
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| January 16 Laurel Gand replaced 20th century native Supergirl in Legion history; all of Kara Zor-El’s appearances are said to have been appearances by Laurel. She first appeared in Legion of Super-Heroes #5 (January 16, 1990). Laurel was a distant relative of Valor, and was born on an asteroid called Ricklef II. Also, upon arriving on Earth she had posed as a shy, bookish young woman with glasses. As a child, Laurel fought off a Khundian attack force threatening to invade Daxam, but not before the Khunds slaughtered her parents and other inhabitants of the Ricklef II research station. Living in exile on Earth and fearing further vengeance from the Khunds, Laurel jumped at the chance to join the Legion of Super-Heroes. Generally, the abilities of Laurel Gand (and other Daxamites) are identical to those of Superman and other natives of the planet Krypton: super-strength; speed; flight; X-ray, heat, microscopic or telescopic vision powers.  |
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| January 17 Luc Orient was originally serialized in the weekly Tintin magazine starting on January 17, 1967. It was one of the several series simultaneously launched by then-editor Greg to give the magazine a needed facelift. Luc Orient, professor Hugo Kala from Eurocristal laboratory and his secretary Lora, share several adventures involving aliens and scientific mysteries. At the beginning, the trio discovers a stranded spaceship with a hibernating alien crew; professor Kala’s arrival brings hope to the refugees from the planet Terango. They then travel to Terango to thwart the evil tyrant Sectan who plots to invade Earth.  |
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| January 18 Doctor Moon started out as an unnamed brain surgeon who turns to a life of crime. He sells his services to finance his experiments and has taken work for the Joker and the Suicide Squad among others in the past. He was retained by Doctor Cyberafter her face was hideously burned, to transfer her brain to a new body, ideally that of Diana Prince/Wonder Woman. When Amanda Waller hired him, he was used to work on Plastique. He is also apparently an employee of the Sunderland Corporation and an associate of the Captains of Industry; he oversees the metagene operation that changes Air Wave into Maser. Doctor Moon has no superhuman abilities, but is an expert in gene therapy, psychological conditioning and torture. Doctor Moon first appeared in Batman #240 (January 18, 1972).  |
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| January 19 Random’s complete origin is unclear. It appears that he was created from a mass of protoplasm by Dark Beast, making Random the continuation of an experiment that Dark Beast began while Sinister’s lead scientist in the Age of Apocalypse reality. It is also possible that Random was born normally and then captured and experimented on by Dark Beast. Following Dark Beast’s experimentation, the young Random is given the name of Alex, and he uses this name while serving as McCoy’s helper in the sewers beneath New York City when he worked with the Morlocks. “Alex” eventually escapes, shifting his appearance to that of a muscle-bound man and creating the identity of bounty hunterRandom. It is unknown if the name Marshall Evan Stone III is his real name or just a name he created for his new Random persona. According to the memories of Charlie Ronalds, a person with Random’s powers killed Charlie’s parents when Charlie was very young, though Random has never been confirmed as the killer. Random’s body is made of morphing protoplasm which can change into almost any shape he can imagine and commonly changes his forearms into weapons that fire hardened protoplasm projectiles from his own biomatter. He is able to randomly counteract any force or mutant ability directed at him, alter his mass and strength and rapidly regenerate damaged or detached/severed biomatter and limbs. He first appeared in X-Factor #88 (January 19, 1993).  |
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 TURNING POINTS by Maggie Thompson Here’s the latest installment of Maggie Thompson’s ongoing look at important beginnings, middles, and ends, this time for January 20-26, 2023... 205 years ago January 26, 1818 Prolific French satiric artist Charles Amédée de Noé is born. He works as “Cham” and is called one of the first significant French comics artists. 155 years ago January 26, 1868 L’Éclipse begins. The French magazine features cartoons and comics. 145 years ago January 25, 1878 Italian artist Attilio Mussino is born. 140 years ago January 23, 1883 Artist and engraver Paul Gustave Doré dies at age 51. 135 years ago January 22, 1888 Animator, writer-artist, and teacher Win Smith is born. He’s the second artist to draw the Mickey Mouse comic strip, he creates Penguin Pete and Looney Luke, and he’s one of the first comic book artists to draw Bugs Bunny for Dell. 135 years ago January 24, 1888 Artist Neysa McMein, noted for drawing comic strip Deathless Deer, is born. 130 years ago January 22, 1893 Prolific British artist Walter Bell is born. 125 years ago January 23, 1898 Richard F. Outcault’s The Yellow Kid ends. 110 years ago January 26, 1913 Orville Peter Williams’ Gasoline Gus begins. 105 years ago January 25, 1918 Artist William Steinigans dies at age 39. His comic strips included The Bad Dream That Made Bill a Better Boy. 100 years ago January 20, 1923 John McLusky is born. He’s the first artist of Ian Fleming’s James Bond comic strip. 100 years ago January 21, 1923 Bulgarian teacher and artist Petar Grigorov is born. 100 years ago January 25, 1923 Bob Heinz is born. The German writer-artist creates Pif und Alf and Jan Maat among many others. 95 years ago January 20, 1928 Award-winning cartoonist, illustrator, and painter Mauro Malang Santos is born. Lambiek says he is the first Philippine cartoonist to publish his comics in English. 85 years ago January 20, 1938 French artist and animated film pioneer and director Émile Cohl dies at age 81. Lambiek says he created the first fully animated cartoon (“Fantasmagorie” in 1908) and was also the first to adapt a comic strip into an animated film series. 85 years ago January 24, 1938 Five years after her introduction in Fritzi Ritz by Ernie Bushmiller, Nancy meets Sluggo. 85 years ago January 25, 1938 Shotaro Ishinomori is born. The award-winning manga and anime artist creates such series as Cyborg 009, Super Sentai, and Kamen Rider. He holds the Guinness World Record for the most comics published by one creator. 80 years ago January 24, 1943 Male Call by Milton Caniff begins. 75 years ago January 24, 1948 Biffo the Bear by Dudley D. Watkins begins in The Beano. 75 years ago January 26, 1948 Rusty Riley begins from King Features, created and drawn by Frank Godwin and written by Rod Reed. 70 years ago January 23, 1953 French writer-artist Raymond de la Nezière dies at age 87. 70 years ago January 23, 1953 Dutch artist and teacher Albert Hahn Jr. dies at age 58. 70 years ago January 25, 1953 Writer John Lustig is born. He’s especially known for work on Duck stories and for rescripting romance comics panels (collected in Last Kiss). 65 years ago January 21, 1958 Writer-artist Bill Riling is born. His work includes production of Disney comics. 65 years ago January 22, 1958 Editor-writer Howard Mackie is born. He contributes to comics including Ghost Rider, Spider-Man, X-Factor, and The Ravagers. 65 years ago January 23, 1958 Bulgarian political cartoonist Ilia Beshkov dies at age 56. 65 years ago January 24, 1958 Spanish writer-artist Alfredo Pons is born. 60 years ago January 22, 1963 Jerry Craft is born. He writes and draws the 2020 Newbery Medal-winning New Kid and creates the New Boyz comic strip. 60 years ago January 26, 1963 The Boys’ World British comics magazine begins. 55 years ago January 20, 1968 Comics marketer, reporter, business analyst, and editor Marc Patten is born. 55 years ago January 20, 1968 Writer-artist Gerry Alanguilan is born. The founder of The Komiks Museum in San Pablo, Laguna, Philippines, creates the Elmer comic book and is credited with originating the term “Komikero.” 55 years ago January 22, 1968 French cartoonist Yvan Francis Le Louarn (who worked as “Chaval”) dies by suicide at age 52 after the death of his wife. 50 years ago January 25, 1973 Award-winning writer, retailer (co-owner of Earth-2 Comics), and film and TV producer Geoff Johns is born. He becomes DC Comics Chief Creative Officer in 2010. 35 years ago January 25, 1988 Movie star Colleen Moore dies of cancer, apparently at age 88 (although she said she was born in 1902). She played Ella Cinders in the film adaptation of the strip by Bill Conselman and Charles Plumb. 30 years ago January 20, 1993 Cartoonist Shunji Sonoyama dies at age 57. He created Hajime Ningen Gyatoruzu and Hana no Kakaricho. 30 years ago January 23, 1993 Wendy and Richard Pini launch the Elfquest ’93 tour at the Great Eastern Convention in New York City. 20 years ago January 20, 2003 French artist and teacher Moïse Depond (who worked as “Mose”) dies at age 85. 20 years ago January 20, 2003 Caricaturist Al Hirschfeld dies at age 99. 20 years ago January 22, 2003 Pulitzer Prize-winning political and World War II cartoonist Bill Mauldin dies of complications of Alzheimer’s disease and scalding at age 81. 5 years ago January 20, 2018 British artist Bob Wakelin (who contributed to Marvel comics) dies at age 65 or 66 from aplastic anemia. 5 years ago January 24, 2018 Belgian artist Marc Ratal dies at age 95. 5 years ago January 24, 2018 Award-winning Dutch artist Jan Steeman dies of kidney failure at age 84. He drew the Noortje strip written by Patty Klein, which ran more than 40 years; Wiki says that made it the longest running Dutch comic strip by the same artist. 5 years ago January 25, 2018 Swedish artist Torvald Sundbaum dies at age 89. |
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| January 20 The Raiders first feature in Iron Man #145 (January 20, 1981) when they suddenly appear during a technology trade show and cause property damage until the arrival of the hero Iron Man. The trio skirmish with Iron Man for a moment, with one of the Raiders using acid to damage the hero’s armor. During a second battle at a live boxing match, Iron Man defeats all three Raiders. The trio are revealed to be the employees of Edwin Cord, a corporate rival of Tony Stark. Cord knew that Iron Man, as Stark’s bodyguard, would follow him to the trade show, and used this opportunity to demonstrate the capabilities of the Raider suits for covert organisation S.H.I.E.L.D. Cord, however, is arrested by S.H.I.E.L.D. Each of the Raider suits provide the wearer with greater durability and flight, and offer varying weapons systems. “Raider 1” is equipped with wristbands that can generate bullets; acid and lasers; “Raider 2” is equipped with a net capable of syphoning energy and a protective shield that absorbs energy attacks and “Raider 3” has two wrist weapons that project and amplify sonic waves in concentrated form.  |
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| January 21 Neela was a scientist for the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva. After gaining a grant from G.A.T.E., Dr. Neela was attempting to use a femtosecond laser array and a super-fast rotating mirror system to generate observable negative energy until the Ivar Anni-Padda, Timewalker, appeared, warning her she would accidentally invent an unsafe form of time travel and put the universe in danger. Unbelieving at first, Neela attempted to call security but after she was attacked by Artificial Life Forms called Prometheans she accepted Ivar’s help and escaped in to a Timearc. She first appeared in Ivar, Timewalker #1 (January 21, 2015).  |
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| January 22 The Legion of Super-Heroes defeated a renegade Controller, and as a reward were gifted with a Miracle Machine, a device that turned thoughts into reality. The Legion locked the machine inside a solid block of Inertron and hid it in their vault. Some years later, Legion member Brainiac 5 went insane. Feeling he had never been sufficiently compensated for the many times he had saved the cosmos, in his insanity he decided to destroy it as payment. Retrieving the miracle machine, he could have easily destroyed the earth, perhaps even the galaxy, but not the entire cosmos. As he put it, he couldn’t “dream a death that large,” but he could dream up a being that could. Thus, Omega was born, created by the Miracle Machine as a physical manifestation of all the hate in the cosmos. He first appeared in Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes #250 (January 22, 1979). A huge fiery humanoid figure, he appeared at the edge of the galaxy and started walking towards Earth at a tremendous speed. The Legion dispatched squads to stop Omega, all to no avail, as were the attempts by the United Planets to stop his progress. Dream Girl had a vision of Wildfire standing alone at the headquarters, facing Omega, then “the world seemed to explode.” While the attempts to stop Omega were proving futile, Princess Projectra and Saturn Girl finally managed to get through to Brainiac 5, who offered them a choice: if they let him rule the universe, he would destroy Omega. Facing either this or the risk of using the Miracle Machine as last-ditch attempt to save the universe, they told Brainiac 5 he could rule the universe. Brainiac 5 instructed Matter-Eater Lad to eat the supposedly indestructible Miracle Machine. He somehow succeeded, though the alien energies contained in the machine drove Matter-Eater Lad into an insane catatonic state. As soon as the machine was destroyed, Omega dissipated back into the multitude of hatreds throughout the cosmos.  |
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| January 23 Jack Ryder is a former Gotham City television talk show host who was fired due to his outspoken nature. Finding employment in security headed by Bill Brane, he attempts to rescue a scientist named Dr. Yatz whom mobsters headed by gangster Angel Devlin have kidnapped in order to obtain his newest discoveries. The chief mobster hosts a masquerade party at his mansion and Ryder improvises a costume from yellow tights and facial make-up designed to look like skin, a green wig and trunks, and red gloves, boots, and furry cloak. Ryder locates Yatz inside, but the mobsters discover him and first shoot at him, but then finally stabs him, wounding Ryder. Yatz injects Ryder with a serum and implants a device in his wound. The serum confers the power to almost instantly heal any wound and grants Ryder enhanced strength and agility. The device, used with its activator, causes the costume to disappear, leaving Ryder naked. Yatz inadvertently leaves the activator out of the wound, but does not realize this until after the wound had healed. At this point, the mobsters find their victims again, this time killing Yatz. Ryder discovers that with the activator, he can regain the wild costume whenever he wishes. With it, a crazy laugh and his enhanced physical abilities, he has no trouble routing the crooks. As the Creeper, Ryder has a series of adventures dealing with supervillains, while hiding his secret identity from his friends and cohorts and dealing with weather girl personality Vera Sweet. He first appeared in Showcase #73 (January 23, 1968).  Klarion is a young practitioner of the dark arts originally hailing from Witch-World, an otherworldly dimension where everyone is at least somewhat knowledgeable about black magic. The problem was, being a child, he was constantly under the direction of adults who dictated what he could and could not do with his powers, as well as what kind of sorcery he could study. Using his power to open a gateway into the normal universe, Klarion and his cat familiar, Teekl, embarked on a journey to learn all there was to know about witchcraft, as well as cause some chaos along the way. He soon attracts the attention of the demon Etrigan, who attempts to send him back to his own dimension several times. A rivalry sparked between the two, and their battles often came down to a competition of spellcraft. In addition to Etrigan, Klarion also crossed paths with Wonder Woman, the Flash, Batman, Chase, and Superboy’s Ravers. Klarion the Witch Boy first appeared in The Demon #7 (January 23, 1973).  |
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| January 24 When Travis Morgan the Warlord encountered a lovely young woman in Skartaris captured by the evil Titans that lived on the Isle of Titans, he freed her. Calling herself Shakira, the former captive revealed a surprise for her rescuer. The Warlord was shocked to find that his damsel in distress was a feline shapeshifter. When he saved her from savage bird-men, Shakira became his ally. She set about repaying the favor when she shapeshifted her way out of a robot’s trap that had ensnared both her and Morgan, and destroyed their mechanical torturer with its own laser weapons. Warlord asked Shakira if she was a woman who became a cat or a cat who became a woman, but she never gave him an answer. She first appeared in The Warlord #32 (January 24,1980).  |
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| January 25 A flawed clone created by the Joker, Batzarro’s speech patterns are almost identical to those of Bizarro. Just as Bizarro has a reversed “S” on his chest, Batzarro has Batman’s bat-logo on his chest, but it is upside-down. He also wears a utility belt like Batman’s. However, he wears it upside-down as well with the pockets open. He calls himself the “World’s Worst Detective.” He uses a large steel chain as a weapon and as a grappling hook, but no other items. He seems to lack eyes and has yellow fangs. He was also said to have, opposed to Batman’s origin, shot and killed his parents. Batzarro has a tendency to think aloud, often repeating what has just been stated in his thought boxes, the opposite of Batman’s custom of quiet contemplation. A Bizarro version of Batman first appeared in pre-Crisis continuity in World’s Finest Comics #156 (January 25, 1966).  |
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| January 26 Cyanide & Happiness began as a small series of comics drawn by Kris Wilson at the age of sixteen. Wilson was at home with strep throat and had doodled some stick figure comics. On his DeviantArt profile page, he notes that he “created Cyanide & Happiness in 2004 because I can’t help but draw stupid looking characters to spew out my stupid ideas.” He showcased his comics on his Comicaze website, and then on Sticksuicide.com. The format of Cyanide & Happiness is typically a single page where the cartoonist would post his comic. The page can vary in length and number of panels. The drawings are done in Macromedia Flash. Although generally static, some of the comics have animated panels. The cartoonists regularly make jokes on controversial topics including abortion, suicide, and AIDS. Their characters rarely have names and are usually only distinguishable by the colors of their shirts. DenBleyker added that the stick figure style “makes the characters seem very transient, as if they only exist for a given comic. ‘Cyanide and Happiness’ prides itself on having no characters or themes. If we ever bring up a character, we usually retire it after its share of original jokes has run out.” It started running daily on January 26, 2005.  |
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TURNING POINTS by Maggie Thompson Here’s the latest installment of Maggie Thompson’s ongoing look at important beginnings, middles, and ends, this time for January 27 through February 2, 2023... 185 years ago February 1, 1838 Artist Joseph Ferdinand Keppler is born. He founds Puck magazine. 145 years ago February 1, 1878 British caricaturist and illustrator George Cruikshank, who helped to develop the “John Bull” personification of England, dies at age 85. 135 years ago February 1, 1888 Spanish artist and animator Manuel Urda Marin is born. 130 years ago January 31, 1893 Dutch teacher and artist Gerrit Rotman is born. The comics pioneer is especially known for his Mijnheer Pimpelmans strip. 120 years ago February 1, 1903 Professor Hypnotiser by Ed Carey begins. 105 years ago January 27, 1918 Spanish-Argentine artist and art director José María Cao dies at age 55. The caricaturist was co-founder of the art group PBT. 105 years ago February 1, 1918 Henning Gantriis is born. The Danish artist is known for the “Livets Gang iLidenlund” feature. 85 years ago February 2, 1938 Walt Disney’s Donald Duck newspaper strip begins, produced by Bob Karp and Al Taliaferro. 80 years ago January 28, 1943 Cartoonist Eddie Eksergian (who signed his work “Eddie Eks”) dies at age 69. 80 years ago February 2, 1943 Comics buff Tom McGeehan is born. With his brother, John, he co-creates the indexing project “The House of Info,” which maintains detailed information on early comics fanzines. 75 years ago January 27, 1948 Archie inker Jim DeCarlo and Archie penciller Dan DeCarlo Jr. are born, twin sons of Archie Comics artist Dan DeCarlo. 75 years ago February 1, 1948 Journalist and comics historian and columnist Michelle Nolan is born. 70 years ago January 30, 1953 Cartoonist Fred Hembeck is born. He’s known for comedic takes on a variety of comic books and comics themes. 70 years ago January 30, 1953 Writer and voice artist Patricia Alice Albrecht is born. 65 years ago January 29, 1958 Award-winning writer and producer Jeph Loeb is born. His projects include Smallville and Heroes, and he serves as Marvel’s Head of Television. 65 years ago February 1, 1958 William Dufris is born (as William Duffy). The voice actor co-founds AudioComics to develop audio stories from graphic novels including Locke & Key. 55 years ago January 30, 1968 Writer Rhoda Shipman is born. She co-creates Pakkins’ Land with her husband, Gary. 45 years ago February 1, 1978 Cartoonist Don Freeman dies of a heart attack at age 69. He was especially known for his children’s book Corduroy. 45 years ago February 1, 1978 German artist Roland Kohlsaat dies at age 64. He created the Jimmy das Gummipferd comic strip. 45 years ago February 2, 1978 Belgian writer-artist Maurice Tillieux dies at age 56 in a car accident. He was known for Félix and Gil Jourdan. 40 years ago January 28, 1983 Marvel and DC artist Frank Chiaramonte dies at age 40. 40 years ago February 1, 1983 Golden Age artist Robert Savon Pious dies at age 74. He contributed editorial cartoons and other illustrations to Continental Features and worked for such comics publishers as Archie and Fiction House. 35 years ago January 30, 1988 Screenwriter Homer Brightman dies at age 86. He worked for Disney, Lantz, MGM, UPA, and others – and wrote the Donald Duck strip drawn by Al Taliaferro. 30 years ago January 28, 1993 Dutch writer-artist Frans Funke Küpper dies at age 84. 30 years ago January 28, 1993 Portuguese artist Nelson Dias dies at age 52. 25 years ago January 28, 1998 Shotaro Ishinomori dies of heart failure at age 60. The award-winning manga and anime artist created such series as Cyborg 009, Super Sentai, and Kamen Rider. He held the Guinness World Record for the most comics published by one creator. 20 years ago January 28, 2003 Chilean artist Leoncio Rojas Cruzat (who worked as “Leo”) dies at age 83. He was co-founder of the Chilean Alliance of Artists. 20 years ago January 30, 2003 Italian artist Guido Zamperoni (who worked as “Guy Zam”) dies at age 90. 15 years ago February 2, 2008 Gordo comic strip writer-artist Gus Arriola dies at age 90. 10 years ago January 30, 2013 Award-wining magazine gag cartoonist Vahan Shirvanian dies 11 days before his 88th birthday. He wrote and drew the No Comment strip that became Brimstone. 10 years ago January 31, 2013 Cartoonist Luisa Felix dies of a heart attack at age 60. She created the web comic Candy Blondell, featuring a fictional silent movie star. 10 years ago February 1, 2013 (Ahem.) Maggie Thompson joins Scoop with her Turning Points feature. 5 years ago January 27, 2018 Mort Walker dies at age 94. The Reuben Award winning cartoonist, comics researcher, past president of the NCS, and creator of Beetle Bailey, Hi and Lois, Boner’s Ark, and Sam’s Strip also wrote Backstage at the Strips. 5 years ago January 31, 2018 Danish animator and artist Cav Bøgelund drowns at age 39. 5 years ago February 2, 2018 Artist and pioneering Portuguese animator Servais Tiago dies at age 92. And here are the anniversaries spanning the month of February… 85 years ago February 1938 David McKay’s Ace Comics #11 introduces The Phantom to comic books, where he is a pioneering costumed hero whose reprinted adventures precede Superman’s introduction by four months. 80 years ago February 1943 All-Star Comics #15 introduces Brain Wave in “The Man Who Created Images” by Gardner Fox. (“As told in personal letters from each member of The Justice Society to its secretary, Wonder Woman!” Glad there’s someone to accept postal deliveries and handle the filing.) 80 years ago February 1943 “Regards from Captain Wonder!” Marvel’s Kid Komics begins from Timely and introduces (yes) Captain Wonder in a story written by Otto Binder. 75 years ago February 1948 Marvel’s Official True Crime Cases becomes All True Crime Cases Comics with #26. 75 years ago February 1948 DC’s teen Binky is introduced and gets his own title in Leave It to Binky #1 with stories by Hal Seegar, Sheldon Mayer, and Bob Oksner. 75 years ago February 1948 “At last! The Black Canary in a feature of her own!” DC’s Flash Comics #92 gives Black Canary her first solo story and introduces her boyfriend, Larry Lance. “The Huntress of the Highway!” is by Robert Kanigher, Carmine Infantino, and Frank Giacoia. 70 years ago February 1953 In Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories #149, anonymous writer-artist Carl Barks introduces April, May, and June, Daisy Duck’s nieces. 60 years ago February 1963 Gold Key’s Magnus, Robot Fighter #1 introduces Russ Manning’s Magnus, Leeja Clane, and his The Aliens back-up series. “From the sea comes Magnus to fight the evil robots who are the masters of man!” Tell us how evil robots might become, Siri! What if they spy on us, Alexa? 60 years ago February 1963 What’s going on here? Why is the Fantastic Four backing away helplessly? Marvel’s Fantastic Four #11 introduces The Impossible Man in (yes) “The Impossible Man” by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Dick Ayers. (Bonus! “Featuring never-before-revealed facts about the FF’s past and present!”) 55 years ago February 1968 The Unexpected is the new title of DC’s Tales of the Unexpected with #105. 55 years ago February 1968 DC’s Adventure Comics #365 introduces Shadow Lass in “Escape of the Fatal Five!” by Jim Shooter, Curt Swan, and George Klein. 50 years ago February 1973 Yes, it introduces Captain Strong (by Cary Bates, Curt Swan, and Murphy Anderson), but DC’s Action Comics #421 also begins to provide Green Arrow as an alternating backup feature with Human Target. 50 years ago February 1973 “With one magic word …” DC’s Shazam! #1 reintroduces the Marvel Family, the Sivana Family, and other Fawcett characters and plot elements. The new stories are scripted by Denny O’Neil and drawn by C.C. Beck. (Oh, and Superman’s on the cover, and Otto Binder is a character in the opening story.) 50 years ago February 1973 “Monsters! I’ve tracked you across galaxies for this moment! Even if you crush Iron Man – you can’t stop The Destroyer!” Marvel’s Iron Man #55 introduces Drax the Destroyer, Starfox, Thanos, Mentor, and others in “Beware the Blood Brothers” by Jim Starlin, Mike Friedrich, and Mike Esposito. 50 years ago February 1973 It’s an acronym: Marvel’s FOOM #1 is named for “Friends of Ol’ Marvel.” It’s a Marvel fanzine – from Marvel itself. It’s designed and edited by Jim Steranko. 50 years ago February 1973 Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian #23 (based on the Robert E. Howard character) introduces Red Sonja in “The Shadow of the Vulture” by Roy Thomas, Barry Windsor-Smith, Sal Buscema, Dan Adkins, and Chic Stone. (P.S. She saves Conan. Just saying.) 50 years ago February 1973 DC’s Swamp Thing #3 introduces Abigail Arcane in “The Patchwork Man” by Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson. 45 years ago February 1978 “From the sensational NBC television super series” comes Marvel’s Man from Atlantis #1. Stories are by Bill Mantlo, Tom Sutton, Sonny Trinidad, Frank Robbins, and “The Tribe.” 45 years ago February 1978 “You can’t stop me, X-Men! Weapon Alpha always gets his man!” Marvel’s The X-Men #109 introduces Weapon Alpha (James MacDonald Hudson, who becomes Vindicator) in “Home Are the Heroes!” by Chris Claremont, John Byrne, and Terry Austin. 45 years ago February 1978 “What is the secret of The Joker’s new weapon – The Laughing Fish?” The story in DC’s Detective Comics #475 is by Steve Englehart, Marshall Rogers, and Terry Austin and involves (yes) copyright. 45 years ago February 1978 DC cancels Metal Men with #56 and Teen Titans with #53. (They’ll be back.) 40 years ago February 1983 Time to pay tribute! DC’s Wonder Woman #300 celebrates with a special issue. The “My Sister, My Self!” chapter by Roy Thomas, Danette Thomas, Dan Mishkin, Ross Andru, and Dick Giordano introduces Lyta Trevor. 40 years ago February 1983 In DC’s Detective Comics #523, Killer Croc is introduced. “Inferno” is by Gerry Conway, Gene Colan, and Tony DeZuniga. 40 years ago February 1983 The final issue of Marvel’s Bizarre Adventures is #34. 40 years ago February 1983 Marvel’s The Uncanny X-Men #166 is a double-sized issue. It introduces Kitty Pryde’s little dragon Lockheed in “Live Free or Die!” by Chris Claremont, Paul Smith, and Bob Wiacek. 35 years ago February 1988 DC’s Justice League International #10 introduces G’nort in “Soul of the Machine” by Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis, Kevin Maguire, and Al Gordon. 35 years ago February 1988 DC’s Captain Atom #12 introduces Major Force in “Sweet Dreams Major Force” by Cary Bates, Greg Weisman, Pat Broderick, and Bob Smith. 35 years ago February 1988 In its “Special ‘Tribute-to-Teen-Agers’ Issue,” Marvel’s Web of Spider-Man #35 introduces a new Tarantula. 35 years ago February 1988 The DC Coming Comics newsletter to retailers announces that Dale Kanzler, Robyn McBryde, and Denise Conaty have left DC, that Ileana Jimenez is promoted to the job of Sales Administration Coordinator, and that Bob Wayne will assume the new position of Retail Promotions Manager. 30 years ago February 1993 Bone #8 begins “The Great Cow Race” by Jeff Smith, which runs through #10 from Cartoon Books and will win an Eisner Award for Best Serialized Story. 30 years ago February 1993 “Who shall hold this hammer?” Good question. Marvel’s Thor #459 introduces Eric Masterson’s identity of Thunderstrike in “What Price Victory?” by Ron Frenz, Tom DeFalco, and Al Milgrom. 25 years ago February 1998 Marvel cancels Ghost Rider with #93. The Grand Comics Database indexer says #94 “was produced but remained unpublished until 2007’s Ghost Rider Finale.” (Note: There are lots of other Ghost Rider comics along the way – including the current series.) 25 years ago February 1998 Marvel starts a new Avengers series with “Once an Avenger…” by Kurt Busiek, George Pérez, and Al Vey and a recap written by Tom Brevoort. 25 years ago February 1998 Marvel briefly brings back Werewolf by Night starting with “Somewhere South of Heaven” by Paul Jenkins and Leonardo Manco. 15 years ago February 2008 Chapter One of “Welcome to LoveCraft” from IDW opens Locke & Key #1 by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez. It introduces members of the Locke family and takes them to the family mansion in Massachusetts: a place with keys. 15 years ago February 2008 DC brings back Bat Lash with “Guns and Roses Chapter 1: Splendor in the Sage” by Sergio Aragonés, Peter Brandvold, and John Severin. 10 years ago February 2013 Marvel’s The Amazing Spider-Man hits #700, which (you’ll be amazed to learn) has variant covers. “Dying Wish: Suicide Run” is by Dan Slott, Humberto Ramos, and Victor Olazaba. “Spider-Dreams” is by J.M. DeMatteis, Giuseppe Camuncoli, and Sal Buscema. “Date Night” is by Jen Van Meter and Stephanie Buscema. 10 years ago February 2013 IDW’s My Little Pony Micro-Series begins with “Twilight Sparkle” by Thomas Zahler. 5 years ago February 2018 Archie brings back Cosmo for an “all-new, all-fun sci-fi adventure!” with a story by Ian Flynn and Tracy Yardley. 5 years ago February 2018 Hit-Girl by Mark Millar and Ricardo Lopez Ortiz begins from Image. And, hey, so does a Kick-Ass series by Millar and John Romita Jr. Hmm, I wonder if there might be a connection. 5 years ago February 2018 Marvel’s Phoenix Resurrection: The Return of Jean Grey begins – and Marvel seems to be doing a bunch of Jean Grey-involved stories this month. Anyway, “Chapter One: Frustrate the Sun” is by Matthew Rosenberg, Leinil Francis Yu, and Gerry Alanguilan. |
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| January 27 The first Two-Gun Kid, Clay Harder, was introduced in a 1948 comic from Marvel predecessor Timely Comics, the titular Two-Gun Kid #1 (January 27, 1948). Clay Harder Kid enjoyed a 14-year span in comics. The series titled Two-Gun Kid ran in two parts, from 1948–1949 and then from 1953–1977. Two-Gun Kid was the company’s first ongoing Western title. The character then moved to the Atlas Comics omnibus Wild Western, sharing that title with other Western characters like Kid Colt and the Black Rider. Clay Harder has bright blond hair and wears an all-black suit with a placard shirt, a broad-brimmed black hat. He packs two long-barreled revolvers with individual overlapping gun belts.  |
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| January 28 Pip was once Prince Gofern of the planet Laxidazia, in the Dolenz System, in the Milky Way Galaxy. He was originally an alien of the Laxidazian race who enjoyed painting pictures of the night sky. Pip became physically and psychologically mutated into a morally degenerate, stunted, satyr-like form known as a “troll” during a bout of drunkenness brought on by a mutagenic hallucinogenic ale. Like all Laxidazian trolls, Pip has four digits on each hand, hooflike feet, and large pointed ears; apparently, normal Laxidazians are nearly identical to Earth humans. After his transformation, his people, also sick of his lewd, lecherous, and hedonistic behavior, strip him of his office and rank. He stows away on a spaceship and continues his life of debauchery. Pip began his habit of dressing in a pair of maroon, ripped pants and nothing else. Missionaries from the Universal Church of Truth visit Pip’s home planet and discover the trolls are resistant to the church’s conversion process. As a result, all trolls are ordered to be killed. Pip himself is caught after making trouble on dozens of planets, many controlled by the church. He ends up on a ship full of men and women who were to be executed. There he meets Adam Warlock, whose alternate future self the Magus would become the leader of the Church of Truth. Pip teamed up with Warlock to escape and go on adventures. Pip then meets the green-skinned Gamora. Pip meets Thanos, and alongside Warlock, Gamora, and Thanos, he battles the Magus and the Universal Church. He encounters Starfox and Heater Delight, and battles Pro-Boscis the Procurer. Eventually the threat of the Magus was neutralized and Pip parted company with Adam on the world of Sirus X. Pip the Troll was introduced in Strange Tales #179 (January 28, 1975).  In an alternate reality from mainstream Earth, a scientist’s newly created robot is programmed by the scientist’s greedy business manager to murder the scientist. The incomplete robot, however, continues through with his directive to “kill the man in the room”, and kills the business manager when the man enters. The robot then leaves the house, programmed to “kill the man in the room”. Originally known as the Human Robot, the character was given the name “M-11” as an allusion to its first appearance in Menace #11 (January 28, 1954).  |
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