Gumby Strikes Back!

While doing the grocery shopping the other day, I always take a moment to check out what new flicks might have tumbled onto the market, and I was delighted to find first of what is proposed to be two volumes gathering together the 1960's rendition of the classic Gumby television show. Created by Art Clokey in the 50's, Gumby was revived in the happenin' decade of my youth, and I'm glad to have these episodes to watch. They put me in the same mind as watching the vintage Fleisher Popeye cartoons, of entering into a completely other world of creativity and whimsy with just a dash of danger to make it all seem urgent. The creativity of the animation is remarkable and while Gumby and his pal Pokey have become cliches of sorts and the objects of satire, they remain durable fantasy heroes for the common man.

Here's what you get with this set. It matches up well with the 50's box set which landed on the shelves last fall and which I looked at here.

And now because it's just neat to do, here is a Gumby comic book gallery.

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The Iger Comics Kingdom!

I found this 1985 Blackthorne Publishing production the other day. Jay Disbrow offers up an historical retrospective of Jerry Iger and how he came to be a player in the early days of comics and afterward. For 1985 this is a reasonably impressive package with lots of black and white photos and illustrations throughout. Along with that you have many cover scans as well as a checklist of Jerry Iger's output.


This volume is magazine size and clearly has been padded out to make it seem worthy of its $8.95 price tag. That was steep in 1985, but getting for the same price today made it seem a bargain despite the fact I already own the revised reprint of this work in Alter Ego #21. It's sweet to have the original too.


The image of Sheena by Dave Stevens is certainly one of his most magnificent and set against the black background on the original cover it pops with particular effectiveness. Disbrow painted his own cover for the book back then, but this magnificent Stevens work was chosen over Disbrow's effort. Frankly I doubt I'd have bothered to pick this tome up without that dazzling bit of classic good girl goodness.

Having said that I don't want to seem to criticize Mr. Disbrow's work which I've always found a bit formal but attractive. For more of Jay Disbrow, check out this link which features a ton of his work on a colorful space opera strip title Aroc of Zenith.

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