Merry Christmas

Santa Claus' World War II-era attempt at updating his transportation...

...doesn't quite go as planned in this wraparound cover from Dell's Santa Claus Funnies #1 (1942).

Unfortunately, the artist didn't sign it, and the experts at various comic indexing sites have been unable to offer possible illustrators.

Personally, I'm thinking Walt Kelly.

(The snarky reindeer are an obvious giveaway)

Any suggestions?

Merry Christmas to All!

And Now, a Note from Santa Himself...

...from Dell's Santa Claus Funnies #1 (1942).

See you tomorrow with a long-unseen cover by a comics legend!

Design of the Week...REDUX! SANTA'S WORKSHOP IS A SWEATSHOP???

Normally, each week, we post a limited-edition design, to be sold for exactly 7 days, then replaced with another!

In this case, the response has been so overwhelming, we're going to keep the design up until Christmas!

(BTW, you'll note that the cover is dated January, 1939.

But it was actually on sale in November, 1938! 

Publishers used to cover-date comics and pulps two to three months ahead of the actual on-sale date to keep the books on the stands for as long as possible!)

Pick up this kool design on mugs, greeting cards, and other Yuletide collectibles NOW!

Christmas will be here before you know it!

Design of the Week! SANTA'S WORKSHOP IS A SWEATSHOP???

Each week, we post a limited-edition design, to be sold for exactly 7 days, then replaced with another!

This week...go back 85 years ago, to November 1938 and see...when elves were part of the 99%!

(You'll note that the cover is dated January, 1939.

But it was actually on sale in November, 1938! 

Publishers used to cover-date comics and pulps two to three months ahead of the actual on-sale date to keep the books on the stands for as long as possible!)

And it looks like the elves aren't going to settle for sweatshop wages and conditions at the North Pole anymore!

Pick up this kool design on mugs, greeting cards, and other Yuletide collectibles NOW!

Christmas will be here before you know it!

Space...Hero? Saturdays WEIRD TALES OF THE FUTURE "Jumpin' Jupiter in 'No Soup' "

Mentioning writer/artist Basil Wolverton in last week's Space Force Saturdays post..

...compelled us to see if there was anything else space-oriented we could present here!

Behold...

Whether it's his ongoing SpaceHawk and Space Patrol strips or any of the numerous one-shot tales he did, Wolverton's Golden Age output was always instantly-recognizable!
This humor strip ran in #2 thru #5 of Key Publications' Weird Tales of the Future, along with several serious sci-fi/horror stories also written and illustrated by the amazing Basil!

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Life and Comics of Basil Woverton
Volume 1
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Friday Fun SANTA CLAUS FUNNIES "Santa in Wonderland" Conclusion

When Last We Left Santa Claus and Alice...

The night before Christmas Eve, Santa was disturbed when a little girl named Alice appeared at his door at the North Pole and pleaded for him to "bring Christmas to Wonderland".

The blonde girl lead Santa to the rabbit hole/entrance and showed him mushrooms that reduced both of them in size.

Once in Wonderland, Santa encountered inhabitants including the Mock Turtle and the White Rabbit, who shrank while using a white fan which Claus inadvertently also uses...

This story originally appeared in Dell's Santa Claus Funnies #2 (1943), but was not the cover feature!

It was reprinted in a stand-alone giveaway, Dell's Alice in Wonderland Meets Santa (1951), to capitalize on the release of the Disney animated film Alice in Wonderland, based on the Lewis Carroll stories Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass!

The reprint's new cover art (as shown at the top of the post) by an unknown artist, shows Alice rendered with the same hairstyle and blue dress as the movie version, rather than the hairstyle and violet dress shown in the comic story.
The other characters on the cover resemble their Disney versions, as well!

Since Dell was then currently-publishing licensed Disney comics (including the comic adaptation of the animated Alice in Wonderland)...

...it's likely the similarity on the cover was permitted!

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Friday Fun SANTA CLAUS FUNNIES "Santa in Wonderland" Part 1

Now HERE'S a crossover team-up you never thought you'd see...

...as Santa Claus meets Lewis Carroll's Alice and travels to Wonderland!

What does Santa find?

You'll have to come back next Friday to find out!

Though the scripter is unknown, the art for this never-reprinted tale from Dell's Santa Claus Funnies #2 (1943) was by George Kerr, who was the primary artist for the comic book tales of Raggedy Ann and Andy and Andy Panda!

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Space Hero Saturdays CAPTAIN MIDNIGHT "Peril on Venus!"

Alien "space raider" Jagga had already encountered (and lost to) Earth's greatest defender, Captain Midnight...

...now the Sovereign of the Spaceways is about to encounter the Scoundrel of Space again!

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Writer Otto Binder and artist Leonard Frank continue the battle with Jagga (who's gone from Caucasian skin-tone to grey in his second appearance) in this tale from Fawcett's Captain Midnight #53 (1947).

He'll turn green (though not with envy) in later appearances!

Note that the then-current science of 1947 theorized Venus might, in fact, be habitable.
The idea that Atlanteans would've migrated there centuries earlier, when their continent sank beneath the waves, was unique.

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Captain Midnight Archives

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Captain Midnight Saves the World!
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Spooky Space Force Saturdays STRANGE GALAXY "Space Monsters"

Last Saturday, we posted the final adventure of Kenton of the Star Patrol...

Art by Ross Andru and Mike Esposito

...except, it both was and wasn't the final tale!

The script was used, almost verbatim (but with a renamed lead character), for a new story in the first issue of the short-lived 1970s b/w magazine Strange Galaxies!

All the other names, including the female lead, Maeve, and various locations, remained the same...

In fact, all the stories in Eerie Publications' Strange Galaxy V1N8 (which was the first issue), were re-dos of earlier stories from various defunct comic companies!

I guess they figured that no one would remember the original 1950s tales in 1971...

The rewriter/adaptor is unknown, but could be editor Carl Burgos, who created, among others, the Golden Age Human Torch and the first Silver Age Captain Marvel (the android who said "Split"!).

The stories don't have individual art credits, but according to the Weird World of Eerie Publications by Mike Howlett, the illustrator is one of the artists who were regular contiburors to the Eerie Publications line, Oscar Fraga.

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The Worst of Eerie Publications

Frightening Friday Fun CALLING ALL KIDS "Pug and Curly Find Someone to Scare"

In comics, even anthropomorphic squirrels celebrate Halloween...

...as shown in this never-reprinted feature from Parents Magazine Press' Calling All Kids #13 (1947)!

Pug and Curly were an ongoing feature in Calling All Kids, appearing in 23 of the title's 26 issues.

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#1 Scary Tales and Scarier Tentacles