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| The Caped Crusader in the 1960s by Jack Seabrook & Peter Enfantino |
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| Various Artists |
"The Origin of the Batman!"
Story by Bill Finger
Art by Bob Kane & Charles Paris
(Reprinted from Batman #47, July 1948)
"The Jungle Cat-Queen!"
Story by Edmond Hamilton
Art by Dick Sprang & Charles Paris
(Reprinted from Detective Comics #211, September 1954)
"The Web of the Spinner"
(Reprinted from Batman #129, February 1960)
Another 80-page giant packed with reprints means another chance to read one of the Sunday Comics series from the 1940s, and this one is a hoot. While the actual pages don't carry a title, this issue's table of contents calls it "The Man of 1,000 Umbrellas," so we'll use that. The Penguin's aunt visits Gotham and he enlists the aid of the Dynamic Duo to keep up the facade that he's an upstanding citizen. The sight of her attacking some hoods with an umbrella is great!
Peter-I always look forward to these King-Size Batbusters more than the regular fare. The scripts are either overly complicated or very simple, but they're Hemingway compared to the fluff Fox pounds out. In any case, we don't come to these 80-pagers for the words but for the graphics. The 1940s-early 1950s work has a vibrant color and almost noir-ish atmosphere to it that is unbeatable. Just have a look at the panels of Selina in "The Jungle Cat-Queen!" and tell me she ain't a dame to share a drink with. Just one night and she'll be talking you into murdering her rich hubby! Batman and Robin in Tarzan get-ups (plus face masks) is a hoot! In comparison to Dick Sprang's expert penciling, Bob Kane's art (if it really is Kane) in "The Crimes of Batman!" is simplistic and amateurish. Not quite as simplistic as Shelly, but close.
Detective Comics #371
The boys are in the process of rounding up the Sports Clowns when a shriek ripples its way through the evening breeze. The Duo, distracted by the feminine squawk, fall off their logs and into the dangerous current. Luckily, the shrieker turns out to be none other than Babs Gordon, a/k/a Batgirl, come to the Boys' rescue. Alas, as she's about to engage in fisticuffs with one of the Sporties, mud is splashed upon her mask and it's deja vu all over again! Batgirl grabs at her utility purse (Louis Vuitton, natch) and whips out a wet wipe to clean her mucky mask.
Sure enough, that night at the Happening, the Gang demand that all festivalgoers pony up their valuables. Batman and Robin arrive just as the last wallet is tossed in the bag and engage in some feisty uppercuts. Suddenly, from out of the shadows, Batgirl jumps into the action. Well, she tries to, until she squeals and admits she's had a run in her tights. All criminal eyes turn to search for skin and Batman and Robin deliver the KOs. The Sportsters are sent right to jail and Batman admits there might just be some advantages to feminine vanity. Batgirl winks at us and admits she tore her uniform on purpose cuz it was the easiest way to get attention from thugs. She then wonders if, since Bats and Robin never even glanced her way, maybe Professor Wertham was on to something.
Batman #199
Dickens has devised a poisonous ink that he put into three rings; he gives them to his cohorts with instructions to scratch Batman and Robin during a fistfight, since the poison will cause death within hours. As the burglars rob the House of Clay (valuable clay pots?), they are interrupted by Batman and Robin and, during the melee, Batman's face is scratched by one of the poisoned rings. The crook helpfully tells Batman that he'll be dead in two hours. The Dark Knight recalls seeing the hoods pictured in the latest issue of Batman, so he races from newsstand to newsstand, seeking a copy in hopes that it will hold clues to the "Peril of the Poison Rings!"
Once again, a great cover by Infantino and Anderson leads to a letdown of a story by Fox, Moldoff, and Giella. I think I used to visit that same newsstand when I was a kid. I looked up photos of Sheldon Moldoff online to see if Rembrandt Dickens was a self-portrait, but it doesn't seem to be the case.
Detective Comics #372
He gives recent flame Andrea a call and the pair head to the restaurant. On the way, Andrea berates the billionaire playboy about disappearing in the middle of dessert: "If you ever up and leave me again in the middle of an evening--I'll never go out with you again!! But never!" Perhaps thinking, "If only!," Bruce smiles and drives on. They arrive, are seated, and Bruce examines the menu. Precisely the same writing as that on the IOUs! The couple eat their meal while Andrea hints that Marberry's is having a half-off sale on mink stoles, and then they hit the tiles.
When the assailants awaken, they explain to Bruce that they are Savate* fighters and they were here to apprehend Marne Zoldin, a former despot from Karonia and Bruce has botched the operation. Feeling like a heel, the "World's Greatest Detective" apologizes and then feels bad all day that he helped let the bad guy get away. That night, he calls up the ever-patient Andrea and asks for forgiveness. Could she accompany Bruce to the Karonian Festival for some cool acrobatic displays?
He then heads to the back of the building, where he witnesses the acrobats making a sneaky, quiet exit to their creaky old jalopy. Bruce hops in his sports car and tails the Kardashians to their hideout, where he changes into his fighting clothes. Just as he zips up his fly, the acrobats tumble out of their lair and pile into the station wagon, speeding down the country lane. The Dark Knight enters the house and finds a beaten Marne Zoldin, who explains to his rescuer that he was leader of the opposition forces back in Karskadonia and has come to America to raise funds for the Democratic movement back in his country. Batman snickers, says "Yeah, good luck with that" and watches helplessly as the man passes out from his beating. Just as he lapses into unconsciousness, Marne whispers "Gabort!"
Just another in a long line of disposable, no-risk, no-effort adventures, "The Fearsome Foot-Fighters!" is dismal, mind-numbing pablum. Hilarious that the heretofore unheard of Karonia is all over Gotham, including a five-star restaurant! Other than for comic relief, why does Bruce continue to invite this Andrea (a chick we've never met before and probably will never meet again) to these functions when he's there to investigate clues and knows there's a 100% chance he's going to have to change clothes and take on bad guys?
The only plus to this mess is the fact that we don't have to sit through Robin one-liners. You can only grimace while moving your eyes over Shelly's art; by the final panels, Bruce has aged enough to pass for Ward Cleaver. The good news is that this is Moldoff's final month of Batman chores. Though we've dogged the guy for his poor work, I have to admit that learning why his stint ended (he and some other artists and writers asked DC for health benefits and were basically fired for their request) puts yet another foul taste in my mouth for these comic companies. As far as artist chores go, we'll have a carousel of pencilers until Bob Brown establishes residency in a few months. Can't wait to see what we're in for there!-Peter
The Brave and the Bold #75
"The Man of 1,000 Umbrellas"
Story by Al Schwartz
Art by Jack Burnley & Charles Paris
(Reprinted from the Batman Sunday Syndicate Strip, February 10-March 10, 1946)
"The Crimes of Batman!"
Story by David Vern
Art by Bob Kane, Lew Sayre Schwartz & Charles Paris
(Reprinted from World's Finest Comics #61, December 1952)
"The Menace of False Face"
Story Uncredited
Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Charles Paris
(Reprinted from Batman #113, February 1958)
"The Bandit of the Bells!"
Story Uncredited
Art by Bob Kane & Charles Paris
(Reprinted from Batman #55, November 1949)
Next best is the Catwoman story, beautifully drawn by Dick Sprang and Charles Paris. It's from 1954, so right around the time the Comics Code came into being and, while it's hardly risque, there are still pulp elements to be found. "The Origin of Batman!" is one of a number of retellings of that seminal event, and Bob Kane's art here and on two other stories shows an attractive yet primitive style that reminds me a bit of Gould and Eisner, but without the same level of skill. The rest of the stories are forgettable.-Jack
For trivia buffs, "The Jungle Cat-Queen!" would be Catwoman's last appearance until she was rebooted in the Silver Age and "The Menace of False Face" was the one and only appearance by a rogue who would get a second life thanks to the '66 show. FF would go back into obscurity once the TV fad collapsed.
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| Infantino/Anderson |
"Batgirl's Costume Cut-Ups!"
Story by Gardner Fox
Art by Gil Kane & Sid Greene
Batgirl is hot on the trail of the latest heist Simpletons to terrorize Gotham, the Sports Spoilers, a group of numbskulls who use sporting gear as weapons for their robberies. Babs is about to put the kibosh on the gang when a passing bicycle snags her headpiece, tilting it askew. Fearing it might have mussed her make-up, the Dominoed Daredoll grabs at her mask and thus allows the Sports Swindlers to say "Aloha!"
Batman and Robin arrive, alas not in time, but try their best to console the crestfallen Costumed Countess. She accepts their kind words and hops on her Bat-Bike, motoring off into the night. The next night, the Caped Crusaders follow a tip that brings them to the Gotham River Sawmill and yet another offbeat heist by the Sports Simpletons. Before you ask how much value logs bring in the criminal underworld, let me just point out that the Sawmill also features a metal shop where gold ingots are kept to fashion all those Gotham bowling trophies.
For the second time that week, Batgirl's vanity has allowed hardened, albeit imbecilic, criminals to walk away scot-free and necessitates more hand holding from the Dynamic Duo. Babs vows to herself that she'll never allow her good looks to interfere with her side job ever again. A few days later, Dick and Bruce are way under cover, dressed as beatniks (well, at least what Gardner Fox and Gil Kane deem beatniks), when they pick up a clue that the Sporting Sillies will be taking down a festival known as The Royal Happening.
Quasi feminist that I am, I must take umbrage with Gardner Fox's obvious commentary that the only good superheroine is one with firm breasts, hot gams, and a great ass. How else to take a story where Batgirl, who previously seemed free of "vanity," is suddenly mortified by a tainted cowl and issues "Eeek"s when confronted by a battle? Is this Gardner's pushback against the rising feminism of the late 1960s? Absolutely detestable! (wink wink)
This pre-teen funny book devourer would have laughed and smiled frequently throughout "Batgirl's Costume Cut-Ups!" because it's so ridiculous. Batman and Robin coddling the poor girl only adds to the camp atmosphere that invaded these titles by 1967. The art by Kane, aside from a few... ummm... interesting anatomy twistings, is absolutely first-class, maybe even better than Carmine.-Peter
Jack-I think it's the best art we've seen on a Batman story in the 1960s. I love Kane's page layouts, faces, and character poses. I was expecting Batgirl's sudden attack of crippling vanity to be due to the knock on the head she received early in the story, but no such luck. She's just a typical girl. Am I wrong, or was Barbara Gordon/Batgirl on the TV show less prone to such things?
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| Infantino/Anderson |
"Peril of the Poison Rings!"
Story by Gardner Fox
Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Joe Giella
"Seven Steps to Save Face!"
Story by Gardner Fox
Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Joe Giella
"Operation 'Escape'!"
Story Uncredited
Art by Jim Mooney
(Reprinted from Star Spangled Comics #124, January 1952)
A quartet of clever crooks pose as TV repairmen in order to rob a millionaire's home, but the Dynamic Duo intercept them and capture three of the four varlets. Crook number four is Rembrandt Dickens, a comic book artist who draws Batman magazine, among other things, and who depicts the failed robbery in the latest issue.
Robin finds a copy (probably marked up 500% at a comic shop) and Batman finds a clue that leads him to the studio of Rembrandt Dickens. He quickly dispatches with the artist, finds the chemical formula for the poisoned ink in a file, and rushes to a doctor, who whips up an antidote just in the nick of time.
A gang of thieves are robbing the Southley Art Gallery when Batman and Robin arrive and start using a combination of judo throws and old-fashioned punches to foil the crime! Robin is knocked out cold during the melee and Batman takes him back to the Batcave, only to discover that he's really a circus midget who looks just like the Boy Wonder! Robin pulls off Batman's mask and announces that he is Bruce Wayne; he adds that the rest of his gang are listening through a radio in his belt. The gang planned to knock Robin out and replace him so that they could learn Batman's secret identity.
Batman drives toward the Batcave's exit and uses a Vulcan nerve pinch (or the equivalent) to knock out the faux Robin. The Caped Crusader then embarks on a program of "Seven Steps to Save Face!" He puts the fake Robin back where he found him, finds and beats up the other gang members, and frees the real Robin. He convinces the fake Robin that he dreamed that Batman was Bruce Wayne and it turns out that anti-bugging devices in the Batcave blocked the crook's radio transmission.
Sometimes it seems like all that Batman and his enemies are concerned with is maintaining or revealing his secret identity. It gets tiresome. What made me laugh in this story was the revelation that the person hired to impersonate Robin also had a job as a circus midget!
In addition to the 13-page lead story and the 10-page backup, this issue includes a 6-page reprint of a solo Robin story from near the end of his run in Star Spangled Comics. "Operation: 'Escape'!" finds the Boy Wonder giving a lecture to a crowd of policemen and asking them to figure out how he escaped from a seemingly impossible trap using a few common pieces of sports equipment. Jim Mooney's art is professional but the story is over quickly.-Jack
Peter-Full-throated laughs emitted from this here Bat-reader when the "World's Greatest Detective" recalled seeing the "Peril of the Poison Rings!" bandits in the latest Batman comic book. Was Shelly Moldoff illustrating that one too, since 100% of his felons all look and dress alike? Perhaps when the Caped Crusader phoned the DC office for Rembrandt Dickens's address, he told Julie that the editor needed a better artist and that's why Moldoff is out the door after this issue. Similarly, the "Seven Steps..." story leads off with Batman telling the faux Boy Wonder that he's not the real Robin. Coulda fooled me.
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| Adams |
"The Fearsome Foot-Fighters!"
Story by John Broome
Art by Sheldon Moldoff & Joe Giella
In a posh apartment in the best part of Gotham, a rich couple are preparing for an extraordinary evening out at the Karonian Festival when Mabel opens the wall safe and finds her jewelry has been stolen! And the thief has left an IOU!
Next day, at Commissioner Gordon's office, the top cop admits he's befuddled by the rash of IOU heists around town. He's put in hours of work on the case but still can't crack it. With a heavy sigh (knowing that Gordon had been spotted golfing at Mar-a-Lago that week), Batman accepts the Commish's challenge to solve the crimes while he attends to more pressing issues. Examining the IOU, Batman deduces that the writing on the notes matches the font he saw on a menu at the Royal Karonian Restaurant. Time to investigate!
Suddenly, a fight breaks out in front of the restaurant; two acrobats (we know they're acrobats because Bruce tells us so!) are beating on a cowering man. Bruce hails a cab, tosses the furious Andrea in the back seat, and tells the driver to hit the gas. Unafraid that some passerby might notice that the handsome billionaire can really kick ass, he jumps in, making quick work of the jiu-jitsu, karate-chopping, kung-fu mofos. The victim makes his getaway.
Andrea agrees but berates the billionaire playboy on the way to the Fest: "If you ever up and leave me again in the middle of an evening--I'll never go out with you again!! But never!" Perhaps thinking, "If only!," Bruce smiles and drives on. They arrive at the arena and are seated. The show starts and, soon after, an acrobat tumbles away from the action and nearly puts the KO on an astonished Bruce Wayne. Suspecting something foul, the "World's Greatest Detective" knows he has to follow up on this. Exiting the building, Bruce hails a cab and tosses a fiery red Andrea in the back and tells the driver to floor it.
The Caped Crusader takes Zoldin to a nearby hospital and then speeds his way to the hotel the man was staying at, feeling in his bones that this is where he'll find the gang of sadistic tumblers. Sure enough! Like a Marx Brothers movie, all 26 of the acrobats come spilling out of the elevator as Bats hits the lobby. After a terrific battle, Batman emerges triumphant. Later, in Gordo's office, Batman learns that Zoldin never recovered from his injuries and his widow has arrived to claim the body. As she departs the office, she vows to carry on her dead husband's work. Batman wishes her the best and tells her if she breaks the law, he'll be there to bring her down.
*Google it
Jack-What a shame it is that Neal Adams just drew the cover and not the story inside! The cover makes this look like an exciting, martial arts battle, while Moldoff and Giella put on a clown show for fourteen endless pages. Looking at Moldoff's bio online, I respect his Golden Age work, but by the 1960s, his attempt to imitate Bob Kane's style had ossified and he added very little to the stories.
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| Adams |
"Batman and The Spectre"
Story by Bob Haney
Art by Ross Andru & Mike Esposito
Bill Loo, the unofficial mayor of Gotham City's Chinatown, welcomes in the Year of the Bat with none other than the Caped Crusader! Bill's son, Danny, takes part in the New Year festivities by playing the electric guitar as swingers dance and enjoy the party. In a nearby alley, a caped figure identifies himself as Shahn-Zi, the River God, and restores his ancient powers by pouring water from the Yellow River over the Wheel of Ming.
A quarter mile away, a giant figure of Shahn-Zi appears and spreads his massive cloak over Chinatown, creating an impenetrable, see-through wall that no one can penetrate. Bill Loo explains that Shahn-Zi is evil incarnate and has "'fantastic powers of the occult.'" Batman is trapped inside the wall, but on the outside, "famed detective" Jim Corrigan is visiting Gotham City to observe its police methods and shares Commissioner Gordon's frustration at the new wall. Corrigan ducks into an alley and summons the Spectre, who is able to pass through the wall and enter Chinatown.
Shahn-Zi explains to Bill Loo that his thousand years of life have passed and now he has chosen Bill's son, Danny, to be his successor. If Bill doesn't agree, the people of Chinatown will be trapped forever inside the wall. Batman promises to help. The Spectre confronts Shahn-Zi and barely escapes with his life, with a little help from Batman. Meanwhile, Bill Loo has resigned himself to giving Danny to the River God, but Batman and the Spectre intervene and confront Shahn-Zi in the underground sewers. The duo manage to defeat the River God and Danny is saved. The wall disappears and the New Year's celebration resumes.
That cover is suitable for framing, isn't it? I always thought that the Spectre was a cool character, so I'm glad to see him join forces with Batman in this issue. The art by Andru and Esposito is above average and the twenty-four-page story flies by quickly.-Jack
Peter-I continue to be less than enthused about Bob Haney's dialogue in these B&B fist-fests; in particular, the "cool cat" lingo that comes out of Danny's mouth is oh so annoying ("Crazzee, man! Wonder what his gig is?"). Having said that, this is an exciting enough adventure and the Spectre is always welcome. The Andru/Esposito art is solid; it's obvious that as long as they don't have to depict unmasked faces, they're on solid ground. For as menacing a menace as Shahn-Zi is, he sure gets defeated fairly easily.
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| Next Week... Jack Davis Leads a Stellar Group of Artists... Now, Can We Get Some Stellar Scripts? |
3 comments:
It's hard to tell from the description, but "Man of 1,000 Umbrellas" sounds like that familiar sitcom plot where someone gets his boss to lie for him to his visiting parents or girlfriend. And Penguin talking Batman into something like that sounds entertaining. Is the story anything like that?
That's exactly it! It's funny and has great art.
Thank you.
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