Space Hero Saturdays VIC TORRY AND HIS FLYING SAUCER "Chapter One: The Captive Planet"

One of the weirdest one-shot comics ever...

...featuring art by Golden Age great Bob Powell!

We'll come back to Vic and Laura...
...Next Saturday!

Published in 1950 during the flying saucer craze caused by UFO sightings at Roswell in 1947, Vic Torry and His Flying Saucer was probably going to be an ongoing series, but never got past the first issue.
I have that impression because this issue is primarily an intro, detailing how Vic came into possession of the alien ship, as well as setting up an ongoing antagonistic situation with at least one extraterestrial race.
It's possible that the comic was intended as a lead-in to a toy line and/or live-action TV series which never developed.

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Friday Fun HENRY "It Surfs You Right!"

Summertime, when comic book teens do...

...well, what comic book teens have done since the Golden Age of Comics!

You'll note that it's done in a deliberately non-Dan DeCarlo/Archie Comics art style by Bob Powell, though the characters themselves (including red-headed lead character Henry) are obviously variations of the Riverdale crew!

This never-reprinted tale from MF Comics' Henry #5 (1966) was part of the the longest-running title (seven issues) from the short-lived Silver Age publisher who only published three series before folding after a year and a half!
It was also Golden/Silver Age writer/artist Powell's final comic book work before passing from this mortal coil in 1967.

Tales Twice Told RACE TO THE MOON "Disc Jockey" Version 2

Tuesday, we saw a pre-Comics Code Authority version of this tale...

...but when the tale was reprinted in Harvey Comics' Race for the Moon #1 (1958), there were some odd art changes to the alien...because of the Comics Code Authority...

As we said, some odd art changes to make the aliens less-insectoid...which really made no sense!

Plus: note how, on the last page, Sam doesn't look frightened...and a couple of the word balloons have been re-written to be less "panicky"!

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Terror

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Wednesday Worlds of Wonder AN EARTH MAN ON VENUS Part 1

After the success of Princess of Mars and the other Barsoom tales...

..."scientific romances" became a major genre in pulp fiction, with tales of Earthmen transported to alien worlds appearing in both genre and mainstream magazines!

Next Wednesday:

the Adventure Continues...

One of the more successful "high-adventure on other worlds" series was the Radio Man saga by Ralph Milne Farley.

Set on Venus, the tales of radio expert Miles Cabot were different enough from John Carter's adventures to warrant several sequel magazine serials, all of which were compiled as stand-alone novels.

Here's a kool article about the series at ERB.com.

The first story, Radio Man, was retitled Earth Man on Venus when Avon reprinted it in the 1950s.

Art by Ray Johnson

Simultaneous with the paperback reprint was a one-shot comic adaptation illustrated by Wally Wood with Joe Orlando and Sid Check doing inking and minor redrawing.

(The adaptation's scripter is unknown.)

Ironically, the comic book version has been reprinted numerous times, and is probably far more familiar to current sci-fi fans than the original story (which is a shame, since the novel is pretty good)!

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Tales Twice Told BLACK CAT MYSTERIES "Disc Jockey" Version 1

We're looking back at an era when "disc" could mean "flying saucer" and/or "lp record"...

...(presuming you know what an "lp record" is), in a Case of Curious Censorship by the Comics Code Authority!

Here's the original version of the story, as it appeared in Harvey Comics' Black Cat Mystery #46 (1947)...

OK, a straightforward tale of just desserts illustrated by comics legend Bob Powell.

Nothing too gory or gross.

But the Comics Code Authority thought otherwise...as you'll see on Thursday!

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Visit Amazon and Buy...

Bob Powell's

Terror

(Anthology of the best of his 1950s horror and sci-fi tales)