David Crane original comic strip artwork from Winslow Mortimer

In early November, I traveled to the Rhode Island Comic Con in Providence. The RICC was the last show I attended in 2019, so getting a table at this show in 2021 was an opportunity to start to feel like things were (maybe?) getting back to some semblance of normalcy. I sold some books and got some pictures, but I also grabbed some unusual original art from a comic strip I wasn't familiar with. Here's a scan!

I obviously have to learn to more seamlessly connect two halves of images in Photoshop, and I should probably try and flatten out that left edge, but what we have here is some art, dated December 31, 1962, from the comic strip "David Crane."

Not knowing anything about the strip, I was still drawn to this art for a few reasons, but mainly because the art is by Winslow Mortimer, a Silver Age comic artist who had notable contributions to a number of DC titles like Action Comics, Adventure Comics, Detective Comics and Superman Family.

The strip itself is mostly unremarkable from a story perspective. Despite Phil saying the word Larry twice, all that happens is one character showing another a car. The art is really lovely, though, and the car in the third panel (as well as Phil's sweater) has not just pencil and ink art, but also a sticker overlay that looks great despite being almost 60 years old.

I tried to find what I could on the comic strip, and it seems that it ran from 1956 to '72. Created by Mortimer, I've found a couple mentions of the artist leaving the strip in 1960. This strip and its 1962 copyright information would seem to dispute that, though I suppose it's possible that Mortimer had a backlog, or that this strip was printed in the Toronto Star at a later date. I'd welcome any other suppositions, if any David Crane expert out there would like to set the record straight.

For most of its run, David Crane was a light action/adventure strip with religious overtones, following a young pastor and his flock. It seems that toward the very end, the strip abandoned this storyline and became a more generic gag comic. And I'll just add this extra bit and see if I can confuse anyone: David Crane served as the inspiration to the Cheers and Frazier characters later on. Maybe? Sure.

It's also worth noting that, based on the writing in the left margins, this strip was #666 in the set. I know it's just a number, but it's kind of funny that of all the pages out there, I picked up lucky 666 from a comic strip about a handsome pastor.

There's a light impression of a stamp in the very bottom right corner of the page that really intrigues me. The image looks like it has a leaf or plant in the center, surrounded by several words, one of which is "artist." What this means, if it was just on the paper or specific to the comic strip, is something I'll probably never find out. But it's something I didn't notice until I took the scan of the full image.

I really like the look and presentation of comic strip art, and I've gotten a few recently. I think this is the oldest piece of original art that I now own. It's obscure as far as properties go, but I really enjoy having it.

Original Curt Swan artwork from Superman #310!

Curt Swan in undeniably one of the most influential Superman artists of all time - I would say that the only artist who can compare is Joe Shuster, the character's co-creator. Swan was a DC stalwart for decades, churning out thousands of pages for any number of titles, but he's rightfully most well known for his work on the Man of Steel. After Swan died in the mid-'90s, DC continued to use some of his unpublished pages for anniversary stories, such as Superman's Wedding Album issue and, more recently, 2018's Action Comics #1000.

The market for Swan's work is pulled in two directions. His pages are in demand because of his classic take on comics' most recognizable character, but since he was so prolific, there are simply a lot of pages, especially from the 1970s onward. Generally speaking, an in-costume Superman appearance means you'll pay a bit more than one without. I was recently able to purchase two very affordable pages from 1977's Superman #310, both with pencils by the legendary Curt Swan.

The pages, interestingly enough, are ones published subsequently: story pages 8 and 9. 

The first page is undeniably the better of the two, because this one features none other than a bespectacled Clark Kent, looking dapper in his business-professional suit (but, sadly, no hat). Also featured is Steve Lombard, a character who pops up every so often in the book.

Steve is a former jock who sometimes picks on Clark, still thinks of himself as the star quarterback, and is often kind of a joke - he's a guy whose best years are behind him, but he doesn't realize it. His type is probably familiar to most folks and he's someone we should probably pity. Sometimes he and Clark have an inter-office rivalry, but it often ends with Clark, like, secretly using his super-breath to blow his chair out from under him so he dumps his sandwich on his shirt of something.

Both of these pages had dialogue that was pretty heavily edited, as seen above with all of the blue editor's pencil marks. But both pages came with the margins trimmed, so I couldn't see what most of the lines pointed to.

Anyway, Lombard is a character who has been around for decades, but most people aren't familiar with him. On this page he takes the company's new camera in an attempt to get an inside scoop. Oh, it should be noted that in the '70s, Clark, Lois and company moved on from the Daily Planet to WGBS, a television news station. I guess they thought that the newspaper industry wasn't relevant anymore? NEVER!

The second page in my bundle is, unfortunately, sans Clark, as we follow Lombard on his ill-fated operation. But we do come across another Superman staple - STAR Labs! I guess it's S.T.A.R. Laboratory on this page. What did "STAR" ever stand for? Anyway, Steve meets up with a robotic menace and is down for the count.

I know henchmen when I see them! This crew is actually smuggling Metallo out of storage, where he'll later do battle with Superman, and Lombard will be used as bait.

Sorry, Steve!

These pages were inked by Tex Blaisdell. I don't necessarily think his inks went particularly well with Swan's famously clean lines. Blaisdell's inks seem to roughen up the artwork a little much for my tastes - he's no Murphy Anderson.

The back of both pages comes with a stamp that indicates copyright information. 

The back of one page comes marked with two possible names: GR and Swan. The second is obviously a reference to Curt Swan, but I have no idea what GR stands for. The issue was written by Martin Pasko, Inked by Blaisdell and edited by Julie Schwartz. Maybe it indicates that it's a GREAT PAGE! Maybe.

We can also see, scratched out, that this page was at one time on sale for $25. The first page in this set, with Clark, was at one point $55. Despite getting a really good deal, I paid a bit more for these. If you see a Curt Swan page on sale for $25, grab it!

Here's the issue that includes the pages! The cover is not by Swan, but rather Jose Luis Garcia Lopez.

And here's the two-page spread, with Clark looking on and Steve getting shot all to hell by a killer robot.

I've been on the lookout for some Swan original art, but they're usually a bit above my price range. These two rather everyday pages fit my budget and also featured some dramatic robot action and a concerned Clark Kent! I'm happy to have 'em. 

Pictures from the 2019 Comic-Con International, part 4 (Friday, 7/19)

We've got a bunch of pictures to get through for Friday at Comic-Con! Let's take a look!

I saw this while driving to the parking garage in the morning. I have to believe that this wasn't a robot being delivered somewhere, right? That it was driven around like a billboard all day? No matter what the case, bravo to whomever came up with this idea. I loved seeing it.

First costumes of the day! Both have pretty good beards.

Funko had two big displays at the show this year, one on each end of the convention center. This one was near row 100, and the Comic-Con Toucan was showcased.

Was there...a medieval theme going on on Friday that I wasn't aware of? These are some great costumes, even if I have no idea if they're from a particular property.

WAIT! I KNOW THIS ONE!

Here's a dog. I liked it.

Bob's Burgers continues to be a popular draw at Comic-Con. Great job with the mustache and glasses for this couple.

Heckman!

The Red Jacket and Greenwoman!

Here's some character-and-episode-specific Star Trek dress-up - it's Jadzia Dax from the "Trials and Tribble-ations" episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine!

This woman really went above and beyond with this Nacho Libre outfit. A tip of the cap to you, ma'am.

It's gotta be tough to wear such a big costume at Comic-Con. But if you're going to go for an H.R. Pufnstuf look, you might as well go big.

I'm pretty sure these were real people. I think.

I still haven't seen the new Toy Story movie. What is wrong with me? I'm sorry, world.

I'll take any Fantastic Four costume I can get. Sue here was the only FF costume I saw this year - good for you for carrying that (Human) Torch!

I try to stop by and see my friend (and long-time Marvel artist) Todd Nauck at every show. He's a nice guy and allows me to get frowny pictures with him every year. Hooray!

There's a booth near the artist alley section that always has these incredible pieces of art on display and for sale. I think that's an Action Comics #350 original cover near the top right. Unbelievable!

Strongbad makes and appearance.

I don't usually take pictures of toys (because you can see those anywhere!), but my goodness, this Unicron figure is a sight to behold. It's incredible!

Look, it's He-Man and the Masters of the Universe!

Check out this great MOTU diorama that was constructed just for the show with original '80s figures. How great!

Let's end this post with a few Cupheads. There were some really great costumes to see on Friday - so much so that this is only about half of the pictures I have to show. I'll post more soon!

Pictures from the 2019 Comic-Con International, part 2 (Wednesday, 7/17)

Let's look at Wednesday's pictures at Comic-Con 2019!

Preview Night started early for me this year, as I was lucky enough to get tickets to the Conan O'Brien taping that took place before the convention officially opened. This means getting up early and waiting in line - a Comic-Con tradition! - to officially get the tickets you had semi-reserved. I got in line at about 7:30am; there were several hundred people in front of me. But I got my tickets and was set loose at around 10:00.

From there I hopped back over to the convention center to complete the booth setup...and to see some of the displays while there was time.

The Comic-Con tarp thing that hangs outside of the convention. Still looking good after another year in storage!

One of the nearby parking garages was dressed up in an Avengers promotion.

I saw a few interesting things on the show floor. This Marvel Two-in-One cover caught my eye, for some reason.

And, oh, this Action Comics #1, graded 8.5, as well. That's a $2 million book right there. Sheesh. The other ones aren't bad, either.

The Conan taping started at around 3:45 that afternoon. The Spreckels Theatre looked snazzy, as always.

Here I am with some friends! I'm apparently showing off my bracelet.

The guests on this day were from the It sequel. Bill Hader giggled through most of the interview. It was a weird show - more raunchy than I had expected. I know that Conan recently moved to a new 30-minute format, but this show ran an hour. Everyone was excited to be there! And when the show ended, we burst out of the theater and galloped toward the convention center. It was great to be able to see the show without having to miss any time at the convention.

I got inside about a half hour before the floor opened. It's always fun to see things right beforehand - there's a nervous energy going through the crowd of exhibitors.

And here's the Dark Horse staff getting those yellow bags ready...

...and I saw Robert Kirkman walking around the floor...

And then it was open! And it got crowded fast.

One of my first stops was the Marvel booth. I'm a sucker for SDCC comics and Marvel has had some interesting ones the past few years.

Some Captain Marvel costumes and props were on display by the booth!

I passed by Grae Drake, former Rotten Tomatoes gal and current Ms. Moviefone, and we got this very natural picture together.

In years past, I was able to do most of my shopping on this night (to be fair, I shop every day, but I get the bulk of my "must have" items on Wednesday if I can). This year, for whatever reason, the lines seemed to move more slowly than I remembered. I stood in the Marvel line for quite some time, and when I got out, there wasn't a lot of time left to see and do other things. But I did see this Alien statue!

So, I apparently have a three-issue comic series coming out this fall from Keenspot? This was interesting to see. I'll write more about it at another time, but a lot of this was unexpected.

Here's my friend and collaborator Mario Wytch, who I met for the first time in person, despite knowing him online for about 15 years. I also learned at this show that his last name is not pronounced "witch".

After the show ended for the night, I stopped by the Chuck Jones Gallery in the Gaslamp district, one of my go-to locations every year. It's always a fun place to stop and see.

There were some neat Fantastic Four prints on display among the other items.

NBC's The Good Place had a pancake diner right in the Gaslamp, which seemed to be one of the more popular attractions during the show.

Super7 once again had a neat offsite pop-up shop; this year it was called the "Boodega" after being Skeletor and Hordak's Lair for the past few years. The line was just as long as it always was, though, and because I don't have any particular affinity for the Universal movie monsters, this was as close as I got.

It was a pretty low-key night all around, but it was a big day with Conan in the morning and early afternoon. After getting some pizza, I was ready to head back and get ready for Thursday. We'll look at those pictures soon!