Money, Money, Money.... Then No Money!

 Back in the late 1970s and 1980s my plan was to be a comic publisher. None of that writing and drawinmg stuff for me. I'd get other people to do that stuff. With Gerald Swan I paid out. With Denis M Reader I paid out, I paid out to a few old publishers as well as buying rights from Donald Glut in the US.

The result?

I spent so much money that I had to start writing and drawing stuff myself!

At least it meant that reintroducing lost and forgotten characters  to new readers meant I could stick as close to the character as possible -some were pretty one dimensional if great fun!

Comic Bits 4

 

A4

80pp

colour and black and white

Perfect bound

£12.00 Until December 1st 2026 then £20.00

https://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper/comic-bits-4/paperback/product-nv555mq.html?page=1&pageSize=4

Celebrating the British Platinum, Golden, Dark and Silver Ages of Comic Art and the long forgotten masters of comic book art and in this issue we look at George H Heath, Jack Greenall, Hugh Stanley White and John R Turner who are mostly forgotten. Their work from the 1930s to 1960s shaped the face of British comics.

And lost or forgotten characters? We hve those.

Who remembers Dick Gordon The Bat-Man?

Cyclone?

Even though he was a long lasting character who remembers The Falcon?

If that isn't good enough how about delving into the early 19th century and the first indisputable pop culture icon Dr Syntax. Educational and entertaining Comic Bits 4 is for the comic historianb as well as lovers of comics.

Thunderbolt Jaxon and the Glamorous Cannon Ball

   Thunderbolt Jaxon started out in The Comet (13th August, 1949) so is definitely a Golden Age hero. In 1958 he moved on to Knockout comic with some reprints. Hugh McNeil was the artist who drew the adventures.

Please note that I slightly cracked the spine on the annual to bring you these pages...at my age I cry over such things.

I Found Another Spring-heeled (or Springheel) Jack!

 

With my long time (decades) of studying and researching the springald known as Springheel Jack how could this not catch my eye?

 Butterfly and Firefly No. 1001 13th May, 1936

William A. Ward's...The Invisible Spy

 

The Outlaw Sheriff

 From D C Thmsons Adventure no. 1346  4th November, 1950.  There is absolutely no information online or anywhere else about this character so even artist is "anon"

or is it?

Looking at the style and there is almost the look of Dudley Watkins in the art. It might bhe possible since he did a lot for Thomson and thee were short one pagers.

Another interesting fact is that in the 1985 edition of Denis Gifford's The Complete Catalogue of British Comics... Thomson's Adventure is not mention but a dozen other "adventures" are!

The Tumble-weed Kid

 McCail