Guess where I am?

Sorry to seem like I'm avoiding the ice, snow, rain or gloom of Britain, but I'm in Greece today, and quite by chance, avoiding the ice, snow, rain or gloom of Britain. So here's to us, hope there's plenty more cartoons to come and a Happy New Year too!

Season's Greetings

Weather permitting, I'm on my way somewhere known for it's sunshine! So here's a slice of the Old Country just to remind me of what I've left behind today..

Giles at Christmas

No-one does Christmas like Carl Giles! Here he is at the time of the first motorway in England, 1959. And so, as I prepare to board this plane for a sunny 8 days away, I wish you all a very happy time. My blog will continue to update automatically (like this!) until I returm at new Year!

Dennis The Menace

A Christmas quiz now for the stuck-indoors amongst you (including me today, explaining the sudden blogging glut) When and by whom were these drawings done?
a) In 1969 by Davy Law? b) In 1988 by Dave Sutherland?  c) In 1999 by Yours truly?

Yes, of course, the answer is none of the above! They were drawn about six months ago, by me. But how so, I obviously don't hear you ask; hasn't Dennis undergone at least two image revamps since he looked like that? Yes, he has, and in the world of merchandising, that doesn't bring in 30, 40, 50 and 60-somethings who are on the look out to buy something of a brand they recognise from childhood. So these little fellows were designed for cufflinks! How smart they must make one feel!


Edited to show this lovely photo of a similar item (click to view larger)

Oo! Oo!

Car 54 Where Are You was a must-see TV show for us. The equine features of lanky, lugubrious Fred Gwynne as Muldoon (later to be Herman Munster) and the excited staccato bellowing of Joe E Ross as Toody were always welcome. Throw in Beatrice Pons as Toody's hysterical and piercing wife and the wonderful Al Lewis (Grandpa Munster) as Officer Schnauser, and how could it fail? Written and conceived by Bilko creator Nat Hiken, it only ran for two years, but, thanks to Channel 4 in the 1980s and Bravo and Sky 1 in the 1990s, I was able to build up an entire set of episodes, bar one. Now, the whole shebang is being put out on DVD in February, and should I inexplicably win the lottery, which I never enter, I shall immediately buy everyone a copy so they can enjoy this mild-mannered friendly dig at New York's finest.

All together now-
"There's a hold-up in the Bronx
Brooklyn's broken out in fights
There's a traffic jam in Harlem that's backed up to Jackson Heights,
There's a Scout troupe short a child,
Kruschev's due at Idelweild...!"

Banned! part One

Ken Reid delighted in pushing his macabre and hilarious pictures to the extreme- and some thought he pushed too far with this Dare-a-Day Davy strip from 1968 which never did see the light of day in POW! that year, nor any other year- nor anywhere else.

Maybe it was a step too far in those days, and maybe it's several steps too far these days- but Ken was a true original and gave his all in his work- sometimes he would make himself ill with obsessively trying to do better all the time. For the sake of his health it wasn't worth it, but for the sake of the readers (and I was one of them in that unsurpassed 1964-70 period) it was well worth it.

Note how he reprises the catchphrase associated with his much missed Beano charcater Jonah - "Agh! It's 'im!"

Keep on Trekking

In late 1968, the British illustrator Harry Lindfield undertook a new commission for a proposed new Joe 90 comic- to boldly draw what no man had drawn before- at least in the UK- a comic strip of Star Trek, a big hit on American TV in 1966-7 but starting to inexplicably look like it may be cancelled soon.
Star Trek was still nine months away from it's debut on British TV- as a summer replacement for Dr Who on Saturday tea-time.

Which is probably why no-one at City magazines knew that the Captain's name was Kirk, not Kurt! Nice likenesses though, as always from Harry.
Within the year, of course, Star Trek had become a huge success here in Britain, and so it was promoted to the front page of  TV21 & Joe 90, and often drawn, as here, by the unstoppable, meticulous Mr Mike Noble, all hail. And everyone now knew it was Captain KIRK!

I detect a slight drop in temperature

Can't deny it any longer, it's turned a touch chilly this weekend, hasn't it?









In the bleak Midwinter or what

Christmas Dandy

Tomorrow (or today if you're lucky!) sees the publication of the BIGGEST Dandy ever! Why not give it a go?

My Favourite Editor Part Four

In 1996 I was rescued from 15 months of unemployment by Audrey Wong at Egmont Fleetway.
If that isn't enough for me to make her one of my favourite editors, how about: She always included copious reference material, gave as much notice as possible, and would fax or phone with ideas and compliments and suggestions.
Other people can offer more detailled stories about her, but I found her charming and thoughtful, and if it wasn't for her I wouldn't be in comics today, she gave me back my enthusiasm (and a job!)



This drawing of her by Mark Bennington in Ace Ventura Adventures gives you an idea of what she looked like in 1996. Here she is now: