Showing posts with label Howard Chaykin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Howard Chaykin. Show all posts

Monday, December 9, 2024

Holiday Heroes DCU HOLIDAY BASH "I Left My Heart at the Justice Society Canteen!"

Even a World at War Needs a Holiday...
...as this tale, which mirrors how celebrities helped boost morale during the war, shows!
This never-reprinted Yuletide story by writer Howard Chaykin and artist Rich Burchett from DCU Holiday Bash II (1998) is based on the real-life Stage Door Canteen located in the heart of New York City's entertainment district, Times Square, during World War II!
Open to servicemen from any Allied country, it featured actors/actresses, singers, dancers, radio show performers, and the occasional sports star performing and mingling with solders, sailors, Marines, and airmen who never dreamed they ever come face-to-face with celebrities they'd only heard on radio or seen in newspapers, magazines, and on movie screens!
On any given night, guys in uniform might hang out with the Marx Brothers and Orson Welles, while they could dance with Lauren Bacall or Deena Durbin, while the Andrews Sisters sang on stage!
You can read more about it HERE!

Friday, October 28, 2022

Heroic Halloween Horror SCORPION "Devil Doll Commission" Conclusion

Art by Ernie Colon
...freelance "problem solver" Moro Frost aka The Scorpion, is engaged by the wife of missing financier Jules Reinhardt, who dabbles in the occult.
The Scorpion finds Reinhardt...murdered!
Frost learns that the dead millionaire was once smuggler Max Cervantes, who "disappeared" after plastic surgery...becoming the respectable Reinhardt!
But who ordered the death of Cervantes/Reinhart..and why?
The answer to both those questions is Buddy Lyle, a crooked nightclub owner owed a fortune in gambling debts by the dead mllionare...who hadn't paid up!
Lyle used the powers of a voodoo mambo to kill Reinhardt, then killed her, but not before she cast a curse on him.
Though Lyle had the numbers for Reinhart's foreign bank accounts, only the dead man's wife could draw funds from them.
Lyle's men kidnap Bishop, The Scopion's aide, impersonating Mrs Reinhart, and are about to board a plane for Panama when the Scorpion strikes and kills Lyle's aides and pilot.
The criminal is about to force The Scorpion to pilot the airplane or he'll kill his far-from-helpless hostage...
The Scorpion was the creation of Howard Chaykin, a young writer-artist who was already a recognized talent in the comics industry.
Unfortunately, while he was (and is) good, he was also slow, and the deadline for this issue crept up on him.
To get the issue out on time, a group of friends including Mike Kaluta, Walt Simonson, Ed Davis, and Berni Wrightson jumped in doing whatever needed to be done, so the book is a fascinating amalgam of styles.
The next issue solved the deadline problem by replacing Chaykin and his version of The Scorpion with a present-day costumed super-hero who was more Spider-Man than anything else.

That Scorpion disappeared after his one issue.
Chaykin would revive the character at Marvel with modified garb and a new name; Dominic Fortune, who continues occasionally-appearing in both present-day and flashback tales.
The Scorpion (in any form) wasn't included in the recent short-lived revival of the Atlas/Seaboard characters.
BTW, here's another, never-used cover for #2 by Howard Chaykin...
Wonder why it wasn't used...because it is, undeniably, kool!
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Thursday, October 27, 2022

Heroic Halloween Horror SCORPION "Devil Doll Commission" Part 2

Unused cover from Scorpion #2 (1975) by Howard Chaykin finally used as cover for Comic Book Marketplace #77 (2011).
...freelance "problem solver" Moro Frost aka The Scorpion, is engaged by the wife of missing financier Jules Reinhardt, who dabbles in the occult.
The Scorpion finds Reinhardt...murdered!
And Frost learns that the dead millionaire was once smuggler Max Cervantes, who "disappeared" after plastic surgery...becoming the respectable Reinhardt!
What does crooked nightclub owner Lyle see?
Be here Friday to find out...
The Scorpion was the creation of Howard Chaykin, a young writer-artist who was already a recognized talent in the comics industry.
Unfortunately, while he was (and is) good, he was also slow, and the deadline for this issue crept up on him.
To get the book out on time, a group of friends including Mike Kaluta, Walt Simonson, Ed Davis, and Berni Wrightson jumped in doing whatever needed to be done, so the issue is a fascinating amalgam of styles.

Please Support Hero Histories
Visit Amazon and Buy...

Weird Heroes
Volume 1

Wednesday, October 26, 2022

Heroic Halloween Horror SCORPION "Devil Doll Commission" Part 1

In the 1970s there were a number of pulp-style heroes in comics...
...and here's a never-reprinted story featuring one of the best of them against an occult menace!
...murdered via voodoo doll!
The Scorpion was the creation of Howard Chaykin, a young writer-artist who was already a recognized talent in the comics industry.
Unfortunately, while he was (and is) good, he was also slow, and the deadline for this issue crept up on him.
To get the book out on time, a group of friends including Mike Kaluta, Walt Simonson, Ed Davis, and Berni Wrightson jumped in doing whatever needed to be done, so the issue is a fascinating amalgam of styles.
Please Support Hero Histories
Visit Amazon and Buy...