The Black Knight Rides!

The Black Knight was getting a push with a Marvelmania poster all his own back in 1971. The poster featured the art of Howard Purcell. Since the poster captures a scene from the story which focused on the Knight, I'd imagine the scene was a rejected cover. 

 

There was something about the stories of the Black Knight which were special, and that was the artwork of Joe Maneely. I first fell in love with the original Black Knight in the pages of Fantasy Masterpieces and Marvel Super-Heroes when the Atlas-era adventures of Sir Percy of Scandia were reprinted alongside those of other Marvel heroes. Joe Maneely was immediately one of my favorite artists, as his nearly glowing pages, filled with detail told stories with economy and potency. He was a deft hand, and I wondered why he was not doing more, then I read of his tragic accidental death. He was reputedly Stan Lee's favorite artist and if he had not passed away, it's entirely likely that instead of Jack Kirby, Stan might've gone a different way when he decided to give the world of superheroes another shot. 

When the Black Knight as a hero was revived by Roy Thomas in the pages of Marvel Super-Heroes Howard Purcell was selected as the artist. Purcell an artist from the Golden Age of comics who had spent most of his time at DC on things like the original Green Lantern and later the Sea Devils. He co-created Sargon the Sorcerer and the Enchantress so he was a good pick to handle the heavily mystical yarn about the legacy of Dane Whitman. The Black Knight's legacy was further developed in the pages of The Avengers as Roy Thomas brought the character back as a hero. The Black Knight had been a villain, but Thomas gave us a scientist who became a practitioner of sorcery when got the ebony blade of his ancestor Sir Percy. 

The Black Knight always seemed to be on the perimeter of the Marvel Universe, an Avenger but rarely seen. He was even turned to stone for several years. He eventually became a mainstay, and I have to say I usually liked his appearances.

When he is transformed to stone by the Enchantress only to become the impetus for the great Avengers-Defenders Clash, then gets trapped in time during the Crusades, later appearing in British comics getting involved with Captain Britain, and even journeys across dimensions to lead Malibu's Ultraforce. Here are some key covers from across the decades featuring the Black Knight.

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Melvin The Monster Day!

Joe Maneely was born on this day in 1926. Maneely was a key artist in Marvel's Atlas years, and he illustrated many of their stars including the focus of today's Dojo celebration -- Melvin the Monster. Maneely was Stan Lee's favorite artist and without his untimely death, the Marvel era might have never happened since there would have been less need for Jack Kirby. 

The success of Hank Ketcham's Dennis the Menace created in 1951 brought on a predictable wave of imitators, all with various and sundry names. The 1956 Atlas version dubbed "Melvin the Monster" was one. 

The beautiful cover above by Joe Maneely catches that "Ketchamesque" feel wonderfully while still maintaining a particular unique character which is distinctly Maneely. To read a Melvin the Monster story check out this link. 

Marvel brought out these stories in reprint at the very beginning of the Bronze Age, but for some reason changed Melvin's name to "Peter the Little Pest". I guess that name seemed less robust and so less potentially offensive.

Or more likely the scions at Marvel wanted to avoid confusion with John Stanley's Melvin Monster created in the 60's. 

The title was even called "Petey" for one issue, a name even less vivid. (I have the lame notion somehow when I see these that they might interpreted by some archiving "Marvelite" someday as the boyhood adventures of a rascally Peter Parker.) Comparing some of the covers above, you can see how Melvin/Peter changed, not only in name, but in demeanor over the decades. Somehow the idea of what kids were seems to have undergone a fundamental adjustment, shifting from threatening beasts over to cute creatures. 

But the "Peter the Pest" name sure is less potentially toxic than what Atlas changed Melvin's name to in the last issue of the original run. Here the tyke gets called "Dexter the Demon". Yikes!


Someone once suggested that Peter the Pest might be Peter Gyrich all grown up. Although I find no indication of it on the official websites regarding Henry Peter Gyrich's history, I think it's a very compelling and interesting theory. His desire for secrecy might explain the myriad names associated with this past and Gyrich sure deserves the description of "Monster", "Demon", and "Pest" if any character in the Marvel Universe does.

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The Black Knight Five!

The fifth and final issue of Black Knight sees yet another change. After only one issue Fred Kida is replaced by Syd Shores who does all of the stories in this issue including The Crusader tale. He is inked by Christopher Rule. This issue is dated April, 1956 and is five months removed from its predecessor.

Joe Maneely produces his final Black Knight artwork though, an excellent and dynamic cover for the issue.

The Black Knight faces a dragon when Modred plots with a disloyal knight named Sir Gilles to capture one of the legendary beasts and bring it to Camelot. After facing off against Gilles, the Black Knight attacks the "Dragon" revealing that it is merely a fake operated by a gang of soldiers.

Sir Percy is waylaid by a gang of robbers who are upset that King Arthur is taxing them so heavily. Percy tells them that the taxation they suffer from is the result of Sir Costain the Sheriff and not the King. Later as the Black Knight he goes to the Costain's castle and is captured but the robbers rescue him and together they bring about the fall of the evil Sheriff.

"The Invaders" is a two-page text story tell the story of Viking leaders who appear in force before Camelot, but who rather than seeking violence seek peaceful trade with King Arthur. 

The Crusader is forced once again to go in disguise to rescue King Richard when he is kidnapped by De Montfort who uses men dressed up as Moslems. El Alamain finds the King in a cave and rescues him after a fierce battle, but there is no solid evidence left that De Montfort was behind the plot.

Merlin warns Sir Percy not to take a pilgrimage along with Rosaumund and King Arthur. But despite these warnings they do go and are waylaid by Tartars who warriors under Mohar Jinn. The prisoners are taken aboard a ship but manage to escape thanks to some rotten wood. Sir Percy rescues King Arthur and they return to shore where Percy becomes the Black Knight and follows Arthur to Camelot where they defeat the Tartar invaders. Later to preserve his dual identity Percy arrives at Camelot on a donkey.

Apparently, the production of this issue was a chore since it didn't appear for several months after it should have. Syd Shores is a terrific artis,t and he brings a lush consistency to the pages here. On some pages I can even detect a desire to evoke the Maneely feel, but still it falls short of the magnificent work which appeared in the first three pages. Sir Percy gets some more time on the page in these stories it seems, but sadly looks a bit goofy to be honest.

The Black Knight would go away for many years after the cancellation of this series, not to be revived until the early days of what would become the Marvel Universe. But that was a different time and as it turns out a different Knight. More on that next time.

The second Black Knight story is reprinted.

NOTE: This is a Dojo Revised Classic Post. 

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