Saturday 16 October 2010

Lore of the West

By Gerry Embleton from  the Lone Star annual 1962(?).

Julo's Bid to Win

...The Hunter's Belt. Illustrations by Joe Colquhoun. Lion annual 1961.

Thursday 14 October 2010

Bully Brown

By Tom Kerr, advertisement 1967.

They Fought a Duel

...With Railway Engines! Another mouthful of a title. Art by Graham Coton from Lion, dated 19th March 1966.

The Sweeney

Brian Lewis loveliness, that-is if you can describe The Sweeney as 'lovely'. Well, y'know what I mean-eh Guv? From The Sweeney annual 1978.

The Steel Claw

Jesus Blasco, Valiant dated 11th November 1967.


Nightmare

José Ortiz was one of the few artists who had work appear in both the original Eagle of the 1960s and the Mk2 version in the 1980s. This is from the 17th December 1983 issue. More info about JO here.

Tuff Dawson

Mike Western. Lion, 24th August 1963.

Tuesday 12 October 2010

Battle Wagons

By Ian Kennedy. Warlord annual 1977.

Fury

Art by Carlos Ezquerra.

Battle

Cover art by Mike Western.

El Mestizo

By Carlos Ezquerra. Battle dated 25th June 1977. In an interview conducted a few years ago CS was asked: 

Of all the strips you've been part of over the years, which one would you most like to bring back if you could?

I wouldn't mind to bring back El Mestizo, it appeared in Battle with Alan Hebden script, about a black guy caught in the middle of the American civil war, he wasn't very popular (a black hero in the earlier seventies!) but I think it was a nice character.

Joe 90

Art by Keith Watson, Joe 90 issue one, 18th January 1969.

Elvis The Story

Art by Arthur Ranson. Look-In, 4th April 1981.

Monday 11 October 2010

Dan Dare

A cool pic of the Mekon. The page of original art created by Keith Watson. Go to here to see some nice originals.

Charlie Peace

Art by Tom Kerr. Buster,  11th December 1965. I love the grin on Charlie's fizzog on frame four of page one. Very Albert Steptoe. 'Aaaarold!'


PC 49

Some nice line work by John Worsley. More info here. From Eagle dated 25th January 1957.

The Shepard King

Art by Frank Bellamy. Eagle dated 21st February 1959.

Saturday 9 October 2010

You Know Their Names

... but..! Did you know what they did? Jeez, that title's a mouthful. Anyway, this week in Lion dated 14th December 1963,  it was Samuel Colt. Below is some nice art by Gerry Embleton.

Anyone listen to America: Empire of Liberty on BBC radio?  Quite an interesting show, each episode in quite digestible chunks.  Anyway, back to the scheduled program:

Tuff Dawson

Text story illustrated by Mike Western. Lion, 23rd March 1963.

Dan Dare

An original piece of art by Keith Watson. You'll find it living here.

A nice opening page for this weeks episode. Although, personally, I feel there was something lacking in KW's work on Dan Dare when compared to Hampson and Bellamy. Hampson was the great technician, you could imagine those spaceships really flying. Bellamy made the whole thing so damn dynamic and exciting. To me KW fell inbetween both camps. He could draw the hardware at times, but then there's an emptiness to some of his frames, whereas Hampson would have some wonderful doo-hicky, or some thoughtful piece of architecture in the background. With Bellamy, his characters were caught off-balance and always on the move. KW's people seem to mime the movements. Don't get me wrong, I love Keith Watson's work, but there is something 'missing' in his Dare work. It might just be the simple fact that he didn't have the time to take the time, with pressures of deadlines etc. Although, when you compare this work to some of his contemporaries, this art knocks the ball out of the field. It's all relative innit, Guv?





The House of Dolmann

More Dolmann oddness supplied by Eric Bradbury. Valiant, 21st October 1967. I love EB's dark Gothic line-work. This is the antithesis of the bright, Pop Art 1960s isn't it? Darkness pervades, even in broad  daylight. Very creepy, very unsettling... Brrrr!!

More Dolmann available for viewing here.



 

2000AD

Cool cover created by Kevin O'Neil. Who I believe started out as the art editor on 2000AD before going freelance?

Charlie

Back page poster by Dave Gibbons, 2000AD 5th May 1979. Nice to see Dave Gibbons, Pat Mills and Isaac Asimov making a cameo appearance in the piece.

2000AD

Cover by Ian Kennedy 1984. Is it me, or does that not look like an 'Ian Kennedy' face? Seems kinda un-Kennedy to me, almost like it's been doctored by someone else.... I seem to remember a Don Trigan Empire)  Lawrence cover from the weekly being re-worked and having an image of Dredd being pasted over DL's Dredd.


 
Below is the cover I'm thinking of. An image of Dredd from a strip has been pasted over the top of DL's Dredd.

Shocking Futures

Yet another compilation of Alan Moore's 2000AD shorts. Art by Kevin O'Neil, Titan Books 1986.

Marco polo

By Frank Bellamy, Eagle dated 2nd May 1959.

Sunday 3 October 2010

Race Revell

Hopefully this series of ads was a nice little earner for Joe Colquhoun? Valiant, 11th November 1967.

Tuff Dawson

Illustration for a text story by Mike Western. September 14th 1963.

The Night Chalky White Saw Red

Text story illustration by Bill Holroyd, Rover January 28th 1961.

Y for Yellow Squadron

Art by Bill Lacey, Battle dated 20th December 1975.

The Silver Colt

Episode 1 drawn by Ian Kennedy, Lion 22nd May 1965.