ARTHUR RACKHAM'S ILLUSTRATIONS For The WIND In The WILLOWS...

"Onion-sauce!  Onion-sauce!"  he remarked jeeringly, and was gone before they could think of a reply

Apparently, ARTHUR RACKHAM was author KENNETH GRAHAME's first choice of illustrator for his classic book The WIND In The WILLOWS.  Alas, for whatever reasons, it was not to be - at least, not until almost thirty years after Grahame's death, by which time ERNEST H. SHEPARD had come to be regarded as the definitive artist of the riverside and woodland creatures who feature in this timeless tale.

Rackham's illustrations are certainly not without merit - however, his portrayals of TOAD, MOLE, RAT, and BADGER are too anthropomorphised for my tastes and, it has to be said, not as appealing (unattractive even) in the way that Shepard's versions are.  But they are what they are, and Rackham is one of the best-loved artists of his time, so here are all twelve of his colour Willows pictures for you to cast a leisurely and appreciative eye over.

To collectors of various illustrated editions of the book, this is one that's well-worth having as it has an introduction by A. A. MILNE which features a letter to Grahame from President THEODORE ROOSEVELT.

"Shove that under your feet," he observed to the Mole, as he passed it down into the boat

The Mole begged as a favour to be allowed to unpack it all by himself

It was a golden afternoon.  The smell of the dust they kicked up was rich and satisfying

The Rat pondered awhile, and examined the humps and slopes that surrounded them

The Badger's winter stores, which indeed were visible everywhere, took up half the room

Crossing the hall, they passed down one of the principal tunnels

He presently reappeared, somewhat dusty, with a bottle of beer in each paw and another under each arm

She arranged the shawl with a professional fold, and tied the strings of the rusty bonnet under his chin

To-day, however, though they were civil enough, the field-mice and harvest-mice seemed preoccupied

The wayfarer, as he reached him, saluted with a gesture of courtesy that had something foreign about it

The gypsy took his pipe out of his mouth and remarked in a careless way, "Want to sell that there horse of yours?"

BABE Of The DAY - Mrs AGNES BROWN...

Y'know, I reckon it's not really fair that my BABE Of The DAY feature is aimed mainly at handsome, well-built manly-man chaps like myself, who, being pinnacles of physical perfection, deserve only the finest assortment of female faces and forms to delight our appreciative orbs and tickle our fickle fancies.

However, what about the ugly people?  Those misanthropic mutants who break out in a soaky sweat on sight of a real woman and have no other option but to resign themselves to lives of loneliness and rejection - and at whom utterly gorgeous babes would never give a first (never mind second) glance.

So - to all those 'QUASIMODOS' out there, you haven't been forgotten - this ones for you!

PART TEN Of FOOM COVER & IMAGE GALLERY...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

We're getting there, slowly but surely - only another three issues to go 'til we complete our journey through the magnificence, the magic, the MARVEL that was FOOM.  Okay, that's an exaggeration merely to indulge in a bit of alliterative word-play, but FOOM had some good content throughout its 22 issue run.  This time around it's The DEFENDERS that comes under the spotlight, but there's also an interesting look into the mind of JACK KIRBY and his working relationship with STAN LEE.  (See preview page below.)

Was Jack simply saying what he thought, career-wise, was the right thing to say, or were the sentiments he expressed sincere and genuine?  They're certainly at odds with what he later said in the now-infamous GARY GROTH interview a few short years before he died.  (Although Jack later regretted and recanted some of his more bitter assertions and accusations when it was pointed out that they didn't really bear serious scrutiny.)  So what did Jack really think?  We'll probably never know for sure, but I'd prefer to believe that Jack was telling it like it was in the comments below - before frustration at perceived injustices he believed he was victim to set in.

Anyway, remember that you can enlarge an image by clicking on it, then clicking again for optimum size.

       

BABE Of The DAY - JANET LEIGH...

JANET LEIGH of PSYCHO fame

(who can forget the shower scene?), is our

BABE Of The DAY this time around, Crivs.

(Y'know, that reminds me - I meant to hang

up my jacket when I came in - better do it

 now - and hang up my cap as well.)

KING OF ONE-LINERS...

I wouldn't necessarily call it the best BOB HOPE

line ever, but it is funny. It comes from THE GHOST

BREAKERS, which is an absolute corker of a film - funny

and scary at the same time.  It's available on DVD, so do

yourself a favour and run out and buy a copy - now!

The ESSENTIAL SHOWCASE 1956-1959...

Copyright DC COMICS

Back in 1992, DC COMICS released a nice little softcover edition called The ESSENTIAL SHOWCASE 1956-1959, and it's a right little cracker.  Containing milestone issues, it features the first appearances of FIREMAN FARRELL, the Silver Age FLASH, CHALLENGERS Of The UNKNOWN, ADAM STRANGE, plus LOIS LANE in her first solo magazine adventures, which later led to her own long-running title.

Incidentally, I've only shown the splash pages of the first story in those issues that contain more than one, so there's actually more content than you'd think from a glance at the images which follow.  The book is a nice little collectors' item and chances are you'll be able to track one down on eBay should you feel so inclined.

While you're thinking about it, you can pore over the power- packed piccies that I now present for your personal perusal within the peaceful perimeters of your own home.  Nice, ain't I?

BABE Of The DAY - SALMA HAYEK...

Dribble-flibble parfle-harfle slobber-

dobber gibber-flibber - SALMA HAYEK.

(You expect sense with Salma around?  You

gotta be crazy!  Look at that... smile!)

PART FOUR Of DON STARR In "The LIVING DOLLS"...

Copyright relevant owner

Right, hands up all those who've been following TERRIFIC's DON STARR in The LIVING DOLLS?  Not enough of you it seems, as no one noticed a little boo-boo that inadvertently slipped in.  Yup, your genial host managed to miss out a couple of episodes, so obviously I wasn't paying too much attention either.  Anyway, I've gone back and fixed things, so check out previous instalments and be sure to read each part in its proper sequence, then devour the up-to-date offerings in this post.  Are you enjoying the strip so far?  Then why not say so in the comments section?  (It's always nice to feel appreciated.)  See you all next time, Criv-ite chums.

(BOND) BABE Of The DAY - SHIRLEY EATON...

Believe it or not, SHIRLEY EATON once

had her own comic strip in TV FUN.  She also

appeared with ROGER MOORE in the very first

episode of The SAINT - before she was cast in

GOLDFINGER with SEAN CONNERY.

FRANCIE & JOSIE... FAREWELL, CHINAS...

I used to watch the FRANCIE & JOSIE TV show back in the 1960s.  They were massive superstars in Scotland at the time, and even when they amicably went their separate ways, the duo were held in high esteem and fond affection by the Scots public for years afterwards.  In the '80s & '90s, they got back together for a couple of 'farewell' performances, the final one being from which this extract comes.  It's in the tradition of music hall acts of a bygone age, but no less funny for that - so enjoy!