If You Blinked You Missed: Atlas/Seaboard's The Cougar

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! It's been a while since we visited the wild-n-woolly world of Atlas/Seaboard with its strange mixture of high-powered talent, mid-range talent, high-concept ideas, and total rip-offs. Today's subject, The Cougar (February-April, 1975) manages to find itself firmly in all of those camps with creators such as Steve Mitchell, Gary Friedrich, Dan Adkins, and Frank Springer working together to bring something cool and new to the Groovy Age of Comix--via a mish-mash of then-popular pop-cultural fads: Evel Knievel, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, movies, super-heroes, monsters...and bayou voodoo. The story goes that Atlas/Seaboard publisher wanted the rights to Dan Curtis' cult-favorite Kolchak, but found the price too high. As was his habit, Goodman ordered up a rip-off, er, homage, but Mitchell and company tried to be at least a bit subtle in what they were doing (though editorial couldn't resist putting a blurb with the term "night-stalker" on the cover). The first issue, written by Mitchell with art by Adkins and Springer had a pretty good Night Stalker vibe, though Jeff Rand aka The Cougar was much more action-oriented than Carl Kolchak. He was a stunt-man by trade, after all...

Cover art by Frank Thorne

The second (and final) issue features the origin of The Cougar....

If you're interested in reading it, just let Ol' Groove know, baby! (What, you thought I'd spill everything in one post? Perish the thought, Frantic Ones!)

Countown to Halloween 2010! Sunday Funnies: "Darn Shadows" by Thomas and Severin

In June, 1970, Marvel Comics unleashed it's homage to EC's original, comicbook Mad with SPOOF. Evidently, they didn't have much faith in it, 'cause the second issue didn't appear until August, 1972--just over two years later. Funny, huh? You ain't heard the half of it, brother! Though it came out in June, SPOOF #1 was cover-dated October, so the ish kicked off with Roy Thomas and Marie Severin's send-up of the wildly popular soap opera (Ol' Groove kids you not!) Dark Shadows. Now THAT's funny! I can't tell you how much that show creeped Li'l Groove out--the music alone sent me running out of the house.



Yeah, my mom dug the show. More funny! Funniest of all, though, is this dank and dusty ditty. Enjoy!