STEVE DITKO'S CREEPY AND EERIE...

Copyright relevant owner

So what's with the title?  Don't distress yourselves, STEVE DITKO fans, I'm referring only to his artwork, not the man himself.  Among various comics companies Ditko worked for after MARVEL was WARREN, who produced b&w horror mags such as CREEPY and EERIE.  This fantastic collected edition, which I bought from a local comicbook store today (though it came out last year), contains all 16 of Sturdy Steve's stories he illustrated for the two mags.

Ditko pulled out all the stops on these titanic tales, applying a grey wash on some and extra detail on others, and one wonders how SPIDER-MAN might've looked given the same treatment.  If you're a Ditko fan, this is definitely one book you should have in your personal library.  Priced at a very reasonable £14.99, why not nip along to your local comics shop and add this handsome hardback volume to your bookshelf?  You'll be glad you did!

In the meantime, here's a taster of the delights waiting within its paranormal pages.

SUPERMAN Versus The HULK...

Chances are a lot of you have already seen this fantastic CGI mini-movie of SUPERMAN Versus The HULK, but for those who haven't, you're really gonna enjoy this combined version of all the separate episodes.  In fact, no doubt you'll enjoy it again even if you have already seen it, 'cos it's absolutely bloody brilliant.  Why am I still yakkin'?  Get viewing!

MARVEL SPECTACULAR RANDOM COVER & SPLASH PAGE GALLERY...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

Whilst Jolly JACK KIRBY was beavering away at DC COMICS during the first half of the '70s, casual observers could be forgiven for thinking he'd never really left MARVEL.  After all, there was a number of reprint mags churning out Jack's back catalogue from the '60s, and no doubt some newer readers thought, at first glance, that they were contemporary tales - at least until they spotted that little box that said "Originally presented in..."

MARVEL SPECTACULAR was one such reprint mag, which came out in 1973 and reprinted Jack's THOR work, inked (mostly) by VINCE COLLETTA.  The quality of reproduction is a bit hit-and-miss (no doubt not doing Vince's reputation as an inker any favours), but it was great to see these stories again, along with TALES Of ASGARD as back-up in the book.  The TOA episodes didn't appear alongside the same main strips as they had in their original printings, but it hardly mattered as I don't recall them ever being connected story-wise anyway.

Unfortunately, I only have four issues (must dig up some more one day), but that gives us a dozen spectacular images to salivate over, which is more than enough for one sitting don't you think?

******

(Incidentally, issue #2 was slightly water-damaged when I got it, revealing signs of newsprint on the cover from the mag above it in the bundle.  Likewise, the splash page shows newsprint from the inside cover ad, but I've tried to reduce the effects in order to increase your enjoyment.  Who else spoils you like this, eh?  If you feel like leaving a comment telling me how wonderful I am, I won't object.  Hey, where'd everybody go?!)

  

COMIC COVERS 'SNAP'! - PART THIRTEEN...

Copyright relevant owner

Once upon a time I owned a complete set of VULCAN.  Now all I have is one issue, a Holiday Special and an Annual.  However, look at the cover of that one weekly issue and compare it with that of the Annual - pretty similar, eh?  Same scene, different point of view, but obviously based on the same idea.  It's possible that both pictures may perhaps be enlargements of two panels from the same adventure involving two different riders, but if anyone knows for sure, please let me know.  Don't worry, I'll share the info with you Crivs 'cos I'm not a meanie that way. 

In the meantime, enjoy DON LAWRENCE's wonderful art.

'AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM THE EDITOR!' (Updated)

Since I removed the anonymous comments option on my blog a few months ago, I haven't been receiving any abusive remarks, but initially my hits went down.  Recently however, my hits have gone right up, but I've noticed that some of the Referring URLs and Referring Sites are, going by their names, seriously dodgy sex sites (trannie porn and that sort of thing) and supposedly-tracking free search engines that hide people's identities.

Now, obviously I'm not about to click on the more dodgy ones, but I Googled one which turned out not to be a porn site, but an aforementioned search engine.  I looked again at my Stats and clicked on the name - only to be taken to my own blog-page.  This was odd, because I sign in to my blog via Google, not 'anonymous' search engines, but things got even stranger.  If I left it for a while and clicked on it later, the results were different each time; either I'd get taken to someone else's blog (ones which are in my blog list, which is how I visit them), my own blog, or a search page for a search box I don't subscribe to.

Not too long ago, I received alerts from Yahoo and Google, advising me to change my passwords because of suspicious activity around my email addresses (someone trying to sign in to my Yahoo account from America, for example), which I did, but not before I'd received emails in one of my other accounts from people bearing the names of folk I knew, but (when I checked) turned out not to be from them.  Today, when I clicked on one Referring URL, it took me to someone's blog I seldom visit, which in turn brought me a visit from him, which is not something that would happen under normal circumstances.

The result is I'm going to have my computer checked to make sure I haven't been hacked again, as is what appears to have happened a couple of months ago.  I don't know how long it will take to get the 'all-clear' (an expert will be arriving soon to check it out), but it could take hours or days, so if there isn't any activity on this blog for a while, you'll know why.

Normal service will hopefully be restored as soon as possible.  In the meantime, be careful what you click on.

******

UPDATE: Right, I've now had my computer thoroughly checked out, and though I can't say with any certainty whether on this occasion I was hacked or not, some suspicious trojans were removed and my security upgraded.  Be careful if you get an invitation to change your default search engine - even if you click the 'decline' option, sometimes you're still accepting it.  Also, some legitimate sites have imposters which look like the real deal, but are malicious viruses which can take over your computer.

A few months ago, a friend received an email from my Google account, containing what seemed to be an extract from Harry Potter.  It had indeed been sent from my email address, but - I hadn't sent it.  It seems to have been a try-out by an intruder to see if his invasion had worked.  Neither of us was certain if we'd both been hacked or only one of us, so we both changed our passwords and the problem seemed to be solved.

So, the lesson is clear - remain vigilant.

WHO'S A CLEVER LITTLE CRIV-ITE?

I sometimes astound myself with my cleverness.  (I typed that with great humility you'll be glad to hear.)  Faced with paying £29 to join a club in order to purchase a CD which is available only to members, I decided to make my own.  I already had the audio content on cassette tape and DVD, and a quick tour of the Internet supplied me with the visuals I needed, so - quicker than you could say INTRODUCING CAPTAIN SCARLET - I had the professional-looking (and sounding) Compact Disc you see here.  (Only for my own private and personal use, of course.)

Pretty nifty, eh?

UPDATE: On reflection, I thought I'd make the label as much like the original as possible, so with a little revision (removal of 'Side A' and 'Part 1') here's the final finished version.  I've now also acquired the actual mini-album from eBay, so I'm a very happy chappie.

NATURE BOY - NAT 'KING' COLE...

Here's the incomparable NAT 'KING' COLE singing

one of his greatest hits - NATURE BOY.  So, dig out the

headphones, put your feet up, and drift off into slumber-

land to the sound of Natty Nat's dulcet tones. 

PART FOUR Of DOCTOR WHO In TV COMIC...

Copyright BBC TV.  Art by NEVILLE MAIN

Feeling a bit peaky?  What you need is a visit from the Doctor, so here he is from the pages of TV COMIC #s 678-684, cover-dated from December 12th 1964 to January 16th 1965.  These strips were coloured for DOCTOR WHO CLASSIC COMICS #2 in 1993, so in some ways look better than their original printings.

Don't forget to remember not to forget to come back for part five.  (Gosh, I'm so funny, don't you think?)

EDISON 1910 FRANKENSTEIN MOVIE...

Believed for many years to have been lost, here's THOMAS

EDISON's 1910 movie of FRANKENSTEIN, starring CHARLES

OGLE as the Monster.  Note that, under his shock of hair, the Monster's

head appears flat in some scenes.  Did JACK P. PIERCE, who created

BORIS KARLOFF's look for the 1931 UNIVERSAL movie, base

that aspect of his design on the 1910 version, perhaps?  (Although

the movie was believed lost, photographic stills existed.)

STAN LEE INTERVIEW: FOOM COVER & IMAGE GALLERY - PART EIGHT...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

See?  Patience is indeed a virtue.  Just when you wondered when the next instalment of our FOOM COVER & IMAGE GALLERY was going to make its appearance, up it pops.  This time around it's an interview with Smilin' STAN LEE (you'd be smiling too, if you had his dosh) and, while some parts may be out of date, Stan's interviews are always worth reading just to see what he's forgotten this time (only kiddin', Stan).  Yeah, yeah, I know what you're thinking - as if Stan Lee would be reading your blog, Robson.

Anyway, without any further preamble from li'l ol' me, here's what Stan was saying back in 1977.  (Remember - to enlarge, click on image, then click again for optimum size.)

PART FIVE Of 'ON The SCENE' - THE RETURN OF CAPTAIN AMERICA...

Copyright MARVEL COMICS

Just when you thought I'd forgotten, I confound your low expectations of me by presenting Part Five of our (very) occasional series, On The SCENE Presents SUPER HEROES.  This was a 1966 U.S. mag with articles (reprinted from other sources by the same publisher) about various silver-screen serials and movies of popular comicbook 'long underwear' characters.  This time around it's the ol' shield-slinger, CAPTAIN AMERICA himself - except he never had a shield in his 1944 live-action outing.  However, let's not get ahead of ourselves - you can read the full scoop in its proper order below.

See you in Part Six - whenever that might be!

The TITANICALLY TALENTED TEAM-UP Of KIRBY & AYERS...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

No, your eyes aren't deceiving you - NAMOR really is wearing red trunks in the above page from The FANTASTIC FOUR #6.  That's the colour he wore when he was revived in FF #4 back in the early 1960s.  He'd obviously turned them in for a green pair by the time issue #9 was published, and (until recent softcover MASTERWORKS and OMNIBUS editions) most subsequent reprintings of his first two appearances recoloured his trunks green. 

However, that's not what this post is about.  I wanted to show just how good an inker the recently deceased DICK AYERS was by showcasing a couple of pages of JACK KIRBY art he'd worked on.  Originally, JOE SINNOTT had started to ink FF #6, but for some reason couldn't continue after a few panels and the job was passed to Dick (though the Sinnott panels were left in).

Anyway, look at panel 5 in the above page - it looks as good as a WALLY WOOD inked panel, which means that it's very good indeed.  Kirby was firing on all cylinders at this time in his career, and Dick was right alongside him.  Brilliant page - I love it.

The page below comes from The AVENGERS #8, a story I first read when it was reprinted in a British weekly periodical called TERRIFIC back in 1967.  Aside from the memories it conjures up of my childhood, it's as fine an example of '60s storytelling and comicbook artistry that you're ever likely to see.

Jack Kirby and Dick Ayers - not only a class act, but a difficult one to follow, I'm sure you'll agree!