Len Wein (1948-2017)

Most remember Len Wein for co-creating Swamp Thing, Wolverine, and the All-New, All-Different X-Men...

FOOM Magazine #10 Cover Original Art by Dave Cockrum

(...particularly, Storm, Colossus, and NightCrawler.)

But I prefer to remember his earlier, quirky projects like...

Hot Wheels #6 Cover Art by Neal Adams & Dick Giordano

Hot Wheels

(based on the cartoon series based on the toy line)

Wild West Action #1 Cover Art by Syd Shores and Mike Esposito

The Bravados

(An ethnically-diverse assortment of Western heroes)
and his (believe it or not)...

Secret Hearts #148 Contents Page Art by Gray Morrow

...romance comics work!

Len was not a one-trick pony!

He had an interest in almost everything imaginable...and it showed in his work.

BTW, all the links are to material that hasn't been reprinted since publication in the early 1970s!

Check them out!

BONUS: Here's the printed version of the X-Men-themed cover for Marvel's FOOM #10...

...and that's why I wanted to run the original art!

The two-color (as compared to comics' usual four-color) printing really muddied up the art!

Follow-Up to "Wertham Lives"

 To update yesterday's post about the "New Werthams"...
Besides sending my own version of the "protest letter", rewritten to express gratitude for the Happy Meals figures, I also emailed the Campaign For A Commercial-Free Childhood.

Hi:

Do you have any idea of who these characters are?
Why don't you praise...
the hero who tries to personify the American Ideal since 1941, Captain America..
the hero whose very existence shows that "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility!", Spider-Man...
the original pacifist hero, The Silver Surfer...
all of whom are included in the collection?

And, since you want a "commercial-free" childhood, why aren't you going after Disney, who've been corrupting childhood since 1930 with products promoting the misogynist / racist Mickey Mouse, the extremely-violent / ethnically-biased Davy Crockett , and the politically-incorrect Peter Pan (among many others)?

Best,
B

As of now, I've received no reply.
Nor do I expect to!

You, too, can express your opinion directly to them at ccfc@commercialfreechildhood.org

Wertham LIVES!

Some people have wayyy to much time on their hands...
McDonalds is launching a new line of Marvel Comics-oriented Happy Meal toys.
They've done this sort of thing with both DC and Marvel characters a number of times over the years. (I have quite a few of them on my shelves.)
However, the Campaign For A Commercial-Free Childhood (a group I've never heard of, and I've seen quite a few Wertham-esque nuts in my years in this business) seems to have suddenly discovered that Marvel Comics feature a man on fire, and large, aggressive, man-monsters!
We've known that for over 50 years!
Curiously, though they comment on both The Human Torch and The Thing, the Werti-whiners make NO mention of the oft-times mindlessly-destructive Hulk, or the often out-of-control Wolverine, both included in the collection!
Nor do they praise the hero who tries to personify the American Ideal, Captain America, nor the hero whose very existence shows that "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility!", Spider-Man! nor the original pacifist hero, The Silver Surfer, all of whom are included in the collection!
So it's obvious these loonies have no idea of what these characters are really about!
Now, here's where it becomes fun...
Want to subvert their message?
Go to their link to post a message to McDonalds...and rewrite the message to praise McDonalds!
You CAN!
The letter has a "suggested" text in place, but you can re-write it!
I've done so. I suggest you do, as well!