Showing posts with label Ralph Mayo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ralph Mayo. Show all posts

Friday, December 28, 2012

YANKEE GIRL "Your Karma Ran Over My Dogma"

Here's a story created in the Golden Age, but published in the Silver Age...
Art by Ross Andru & Mike Esposito
...featuring a character who appeared in only one other story, as shown HERE!
This tale from IW Comics' Danger #16 (1964), illustrated by Ralph Mayo, was part of the unpublished inventory purchased from the defunct Chesler Publishing company.
It was probably intended for the never-published Dynamic Comics #26-29.
(The series ran from #1-25, then #30!)
No origin story was ever done by the strip's creators, but other writers/artists continued with new tales from the 1990s to the present, including an origin.
TRIVIA:
The cover for Danger was done by Ross Andru and Mike Esposito, who were illustrating Wonder Woman for DC at the time!
There was a previous Yankee Girl from Chester, but she was a spy, not a costumed heroine.

Be here next week, when we present another tale of classic comic grrl power!

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Friday, August 10, 2012

Tell a Tale Three Times: Part 3 "Ghost of Castle Karloff"

This is becoming a just a tad repetitive...
...but it's the last version of this story, we promise!
You can find the first one HERE and the second one HERE!
This version is from St John's Strange Terrors #1 (1952), and it's the only time any iteration of this tale made the cover...
"Zoombies?"
Most comic book publishers used outside studios who "packaged" their books, providing complete writing and art services.
One of the the biggest one was Harry Chester Studios, which started out as a "packager" for MLJ/Archie and Centaur providing complete editorial and art services, before setting up their own comic publishing operation, Chester/Dynamic!
When Chester/Dynamic folded at the end of the 1940s, the studio returned to supplying stories and art to others, particularly St John Publishing.
Chester was an extremely budget-conscious (some might say [ahem] cheap) guy who didn't hesitate to recycle existing material with minor modifications for different clients.
Most people think the Lady Satan story was only modified once!
In fact, the Grand Comics DataBase notes the re-use of this tale as "Phantom", but not as "Ghost"!

In another example, competitor Iger Studios reworked existing art for a 1940s Spitfire Saunders story involving Nazis from Elliot's Bomber Comics, which was re-edited into a 1950s Phantom Lady tale with the heroine battling Commies!

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Thursday, August 9, 2012

Tell a Tale Three Times: Part 2 "Phantom of Marcos' Villa"

Last time, we presented a tale starring Lady Satan...
Now, here's that tale again (sort of), starring "Marietta" instead of Lady Satan, and featuring some rewritten plot elements and dialogue.
Published in St John's Authentic Police Cases #5 (1948), this version reworks the story with only minor changes to the art, including removing Lady Satan's mask to make her the maskless "Mairetta".
Curiously, Authentic Police Cases had already reprinted other Lady Satan tales, without making any alterations!
Tomorrow, yet another version of this tale, with another heroine, now named "Celeste" who is now the daughter of the dead man.
Plus, an explanation of why this re-use of the story occurred!
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Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Tell a Tale Three Times: LADY SATAN "Wild Night at Wild Acres"

This tale was published three times in less than ten years...
...each time with a different heroine and supporting characters!
Here's the first version of this story...
Lady Satan was a magic-powered sleuth who initially battled the Nazis who killed her fiance, and, after the war, fought supernatural threats.
Her strip appeared in several Chesler/Dynamic Publishing comics, usually as filler whenever a page count came up short.
This tale from Red Seal Comics #18 (1946), illustrated by Ralph Mayo, was near the end of her career.
However, the story itself would see publication again...but without Lady Satan!
How is that possible?
Be here tomorrow for the answer!
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Friday, June 22, 2012

YANKEE GIRL "Cat Show Killer"

For a superheroine who appeared only twice in new stories...
...once in the Golden Age and once in the Silver Age, Yankee Girl's had a hell of a run!
This purr-fectly entertaining tale appeared in Chesler/Superior's Dynamic Comics #23 (1947), illustrated by Ralph Mayo.
It's been reprinted several times since by various publishers.
As was the case with many Golden Age characters, the first story is not the origin, and the character is already established and active.
There was another Yankee Girl tale produced during the Golden Age, but it didn't see print until the Silver Age.
We'll be presenting it in the future.
No origin story was ever done by the strip's creators, but other writers/artists continued with new tales from the 1990s to the present, including an origin.

NOTE: There was a previous Yankee Girl from the same publisher, who we'll be presenting here, probably around Labor Day weekend.

Be here next week, when we present another tale of classic comic grrl power!

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