Separated at Mirth: Pop (Up) Quiz

Today's "Pop (Up) Quiz": Which animated character was Bugs Bunny's closest successor, or "HARE apparent", if you will?  

If you ask me, I'd say it was The Pink Panther!  

Both were tall, slim, and handsome figures, with a theatrical bent.  

Both were profoundly influenced by animation legend Friz Freleng. 

 

Both confounded the heck out of smaller, often fiery, regular adversaries. 

And both were published by Gold Key Comics!

In fact the only thing missing might be... a SEPARATION AT MIRTH! 

Well, we're here to remedy THAT little bit of business right now... with LOONEY TUNES # 218 (Dell Comics, Cover Date: December, 1959)...

And MARCH OF COMICS # 376 (The Pink Panther) 1973.  Dell, Gold Key, and March of Comics all emanated from good old Western Publishing in Poughkeepsie, New York!  

Beyond the gag, even the layout is almost identical!  ...Screwdriver and all!  

And there you have the answer to our "Pop (Up Toaster) Quiz" - another electrically-powered jolt of SEPARATED AT MIRTH! 

Adventures in Comic-Boxing: The Case of the Mislaid Logo!

As a spin-off of it's PINK PANTHER series, begun in 1971, Gold Key Comics added a series devoted to DePatie-Freleng's other starring character, THE INSPECTOR, running for 19 issues beginning in 1974.

Today, we focus on THE INSPECTOR # 9 (Cover Date: May, 1976), and one oddity found therein.

In the issue, we have such stories as "The Case of the Missing Commissioner"...

..."The Case of the Stolen Statues", and "The Case of the Mysterious Arsonist".

As per the cover, there is also a PINK PANTHER backup story - "Pink Profiteer"!

Hmmm... Something seems to be wrong here, but I'm not sure what!  

Let's dolly-in a little bit, shall we?  

A little more... 

By now, even The Inspector must have a clue!

Yes!  The Inspector's LOGO has been placed on the Pink Panther story!  

Just for the sake of setting things right, here's the opening splash panel of the Pink Panther backup from THE INSPECTOR # 11, with the Pink Panther logo as it should be...

Perhaps this instance of "Logo Supplanting"is just The Inspector's tiny bit of revenge for the way he is generally treated on PINK PANTHER covers!

Sometimes, he who showers last (after all that physical abuse) laughs best! 

New York Comic Con 2018 - Day by Day!

New York Comic Con 2018... What more needs to be said!  

Four glorious days of total immersion in comic books, things related to comic books and their unique and specific culture, and - as these festivals have evolved over the last two decades or so - things NOT so related to comic books and their unique and specific culture, from Thursday, October 04 thru Sunday, October 07, 2018!

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 04: For someone still primarily dedicated to filling those remaining holes in the old comic collection, as I am, Thursday is always the best day to be there!  It is a work and/or school day for many would-be attendees!  Thus, the crowds are more manageable to negotiate and more conducive to a focused day of comic shopping.

And fill those nagging holes, I did... with some of these! 

ANDY PANDA # 28:  Completing my run of Dell's ANDY PANDA!

SCOOBY-DOO (DC Comics, 1997 Series) # 147:  Leaving me only five issues shy of all DC SCOOBY-DOO titles (3 missing from the 1997 Series, and 2 from the 2010 Series SCOOBY-DOO WHERE ARE YOU?)  

PINK PANTHER # 9:  Leaving only three issues to go on what might be the BEST Gold Key series of the 1970s!  Yes, really... Especially those issues by Warren Tufts (below)!

THE INSPECTOR # 13: (Warren Tufts again!)  Completing that series!

POPEYE # 116:  Unlike their dreadful Hanna-Barbera comics, Charlton's POPEYE series is really not all that bad... especially if you pretend that E.C. Segar, Bud Sagendorf, and Bobby London never existed.

But, even in a world graced by the vast talents of Segar, Sagendorf, and London, the Charlton POPEYE comics are a somewhat delightfully off-kilter experience, and worthwhile - if you find them cheap! 

And, the prize catch of the day...

NEW FUNNIES # 96:  I don't have anywhere near enough of these, so any and every issue obtained is a treasure!  Yes, Andy Panda and Charlie Chicken are ringing-in (...actually walking-in) the new year of 1945!  ...If this Blog (not to mention yours truly) is still alive in 2045, expect to see this cover illustrating my New Year's post for that year!

If I'm not around by then (a good bet, alas), maybe Averi can take it over!  I hope she remembers this on December 31, 2044!

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 05:  With my hardcore shopping virtually completed, this was a day to wander around the parts of the con not staked-out by comic book dealers - an ever-growing segment of the greater whole, unfortunately!

Dodging the cosplayers and their bothersome, oversized, and aisle-blocking props - and the additionally aisle-blocking ubiquitous persons who stop all forward progress to photograph them, I visited various publisher booths and related attractions.

For the first time since NYCC 2014, the IDW booth was NOT a stop for me.  For those wondering why, look no further than THIS POST! 

On the plus side, I visited the "TWO MORROWS" booth, meeting Keith Dallas, author of some of the very best books on comics... like these!

I literally devoured the former a few years ago, and am currently immersed in the latter.  I cannot recommend the "American Comic Book Chronicles" series more highly!  Go to Amazon, and order all of them - now!

They're not just all about DC and Marvel - but EVERYTHING gets a proper examination!  Note Uncle Scrooge in the upper right corner - next to a "Wishnik", of all things!

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 06:  Saturday is the con day I dislike the most!  The crowds are at their thickest and most obnoxious!  The cosplayers and their adoring, picture-taking fans are (like VISA) "everywhere you want to be"!  Shopping with any purpose is nearly impossible - as is even normal conversation.

I've gotta wonder... Since (from my limited and admittedly "Old Grumpy Comic Book Collector" point of view) cosplayers appear to "be there just to be seen and incessantly photographed", what do they do with their vast array of costuming items and accessories for the rest of the year?

Do they go from con to con doing the same thing for as many different shows as time and travel budget will allow?  And what - really, what - do the folks who take picture after picture of cosplayers do with those photos?   Is it like the odd Millennial custom of photographing YOUR FOOD, when you go out to dinner?  (I've really seen that several times!) I guess it all ends up on social media somewhere and somehow... but to what end?

No joke, I'd really like to know.  And, just because I'd like my aisles clearer and easier to negotiate, doesn't mean I dislike cosplayers.  Quite the contrary... I appreciate their inventiveness!  I just wish there were specifically "Designated Cosplay / Picture-Taking Zones" to give me the feeling that they've all "gotten off my lawn" - and out of my shopping-intensive way! 

But, to show there are no hard feelings, please note that I am very likely the first person ever to use the term "Cosplayer" in a Disney comic book!  See the panels below from IDW's UNCLE SCROOGE # 37 (2018).  Click to Enlarge! 

On Saturdays, I generally ARRIVE LATE and LEAVE EARLY!  This year was no exception!   

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 07:  Sunday USED to be a noticeably quieter, calmer, and less-crowded day than Saturday.  Last year and this year, would seem to disprove this, as it felt like "Saturday II"!

Still, there was time, more as the day wound down, to make one final pass of all the dealers and "call it a year"!

The true highlight of the day was a post-con dinner with "two-of-my-favorite-persons-not-named- Esther-or-Averi" at one of our "regular places", Dallas BBQ near Times Square!  The food is always great, and I feel they handle high-volume crowds better than just about any place I've ever eaten in New York City!

And so, with a heavy heart, a heavy tummy full of delicious Dallas BBQ food, a heavy pack of back issues, and a lighter wallet, I say farewell to New York Comic Con for another year!

If you've gone to NYCC before, please try to go again.

If you've never been to NYCC, please go!  Collector or cosplayer, you won't regret it!

It's more fun than a barrel of "Legendary Super Pickaxes", er, I mean monkeys!

Even "Legendary Super Monkeys"!

I'd like to dedicate this post to my late friend Chris Barat, with whom (back in the 1990s) I shared many a trip to what was once the "San Diego Comic Con"!

During our respective Fanzine and APA column days, Chris would chronicle the annual visit to SDCC with a day-by-day report of the day's activities.  And, while writing this, it occurred to me that I have just done the same thing with this Blog post!  ...Just not as well as Chris did! 

It's a pity none of you can read Chris' accounts of all the purchases we made, things we did and people we met - and all the damned FUN we had as part of a large group that descended on San Diego nearly every year.  Unlike me, he REALLY made you feel as if you WERE there!  

One of my own favorite memories was the hotel breakfasts we would have before venturing over to the San Diego Convention Center for the day.  Just before leaving, I would give a short and melodramatic speech at the breakfast table to inspire us all to get the most out of these precious San Diego days... 

...And each of those daily speeches would with end with my loudly declaring: "NOW, LET'S GET OUT THERE AND KICK SOME DEALER BUTT!" 

One time, Chris made a particularly ill-advised purchase (can't recall if he "paid too much", or merely got a notably inferior piece of merchandise), and we laughed as I said: "Looks like Dealer Butt kicked YOU!" 

Those were great days, and I only wish Chris was still with us to share more of them!  

I’m Not an Artist, But… Speaking of Space!

Here's a nice little counterpoint to our last post, which inaugurated the "I’m Not an Artist, But…" sub-series!

In THAT POST, I noted the poorly designed cover for Disney Comics' WALT DISNEY'S COMICS AND STORIES # 574 (1992), and all the needlessly empty blank space, both above, and to the left of, the figure of Donald Duck!  (Below)
 

                                               
In contrast, look at this nice job by an old pro, the tragically underrated Phil De Lara, for the cover of THE PINK PANTHER # 13 (Gold Key Comics, 1973)!  

Specifically, for the use of an ANTENNA on the back of the Panther's car, and how it extends into, and eliminates any possibility of, (...all together now) "empty blank space" to the left of the Panther's head - no matter how slight that  "empty blank space" might have been! 

It's all the more a case of "going that little extra step", and you might not even notice it unless you "linger on the cover and think about it more deeply than is warranted", because the ANTENNA is IN NO WAY NEEDED TO CARRY THE GAG! 

It's just there for the sake of the best possible composition!  It even abuts the logo in such a way that one might imagine the antenna giving the "fancy P" of "Panther" a little nudge!  
 

Well done and bravo, Phil De Lara!  

Completely shifting gears, in addition to categorizing this post in the new "I’m Not an Artist, But…" sub-series, we could also put it in the "Adventures in Comic-Boxing" sub-series, as this observation was formulated while digging through my comics long boxes!  

 And, it even quasi-qualifies for our other sub-series, "Separated at Mirth" with Mutt and Jeff, in that the height disparity between The Pink Panther and The Inspector is played-up similarly to that between Mutt and Jeff - with SOMETHING BEING OPENED ON TOP to accommodate the taller toff of each two!   
 

The Pink Panther with a CAR...

 

 

...And Mutt and Jeff with an UMBRELLA!  

As you can see, Mutt and Jeff did this umbrella gag more than once... MUCH MORE, in fact!  But, that will be the subject of a future "Separated at Mirth"!  

For now, we'll just celebrate Gold Key's THE PINK PANTHER # 13 (1973) for hitting the TIAH-Trifecta of "Adventures in Comic-Boxing", "Separated at Mirth", and "I’m Not an Artist, But…" !   
 

 

How many comics can make a claim like THAT!