Direct Currents: Johnny Thunder

One of National Comics early Western heroes Johnny Thunder, first appeared in All-American Comics #100 in 1948. His real name was John Stuart Mill Tane and he lived in a Mormon settlement of Mesa City, Arizona. The son of a sheriff and a schoolteacher, Johnny's mother makes him promise never to use violence to solve problems or pick up a gun and asks him to instead follow in her footsteps teaching. Johnny does become a mild mannered  schoolteacher, but he soon finds out that living in the wild west there are situations where violence is required to right a wrong. In order to keep his vow to his mother, Johnny created the identity of gunslinger Johnny Thunder by changing clothes and darkening his hair to coal  black. A superb athlete and swordsman, Johnny Thunder was also an expert sharpshooter and a superior horseman. He rode a white stallion whose odd dark marking on its forehead earned it the name Black Lightnin'. During an encounter with Johnny's arch-enemy Silk Black, Madame .44 accidentally learned Johnny Thunder's true identity, while Johnny learned that Madame .44 was actually his lady friend Jeanne Walker, a local photographer. Admitting their love for one another, John and Jeanne revealed their true identities to Sheriff Tane and were married soon after, promising to help the sheriff keep the peace in Mesa City. With twenty four issues ahead of there time in dealing with African and Native Americans, the art was equally impressive by Gil Kane and Alex Toth.



Foreign Favorites: IL Piccolo Ranger

Created by writer Andrea Lavezzolo and illustrated by Francesco Gamba, IL Piccolo Ranger (The Little Ranger) was produced by the  Audac  Publishing House with a first appearance on June 15, 1958. Kit Teller, our young hero of the series, is the son of Moses and Mary Worth Teller who emigrate from Wales to seek their fortune in the New World.  Arriving in the United States, the married couple end up in the wilds of the frontier in search for work as baby Kit arrives in 1861. When his mother suddenly dies and the baby falls ill, Moses seeks out the Indian tribe of Red Bison, which  nurse back to health the lad as the pioneers stay to learn the ways of the Native Americans. Moses eventually leave their new friends to become a Ranger and teaches Kit about being a soldier, until the fort adopts him as their youngest member. From this moment on, the Little Ranger lives out his adventures in the wilderness facing outlaws, savage Indians, fierce reptiles, uncanny extraterrestrials, and even medieval warriors who somehow landed in the States. With a strong supporting cast of colorful characters, there was always plenty of action and adventure that excited many a Italian reader with their Western teen hero.



Comic Artists Speak...Dick Ayers: With Great Power Interview

Nice little interview from 2012 with inker/artist Dick Ayers as he talks about working with Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, the Marvel Bullpen, and his experiences during World War II and Nick Fury and his Howling Commandoes!

My Greatest Adventure: Beowulf

Based on the Anglo-Saxon mythic hero Beowulf, first depicted in the Nowell Codex, Beowulf: Dragon Slayer #1 debuted in May of 1975, written by Michael Uslan and drawn by artist Ricardo Villamonte. Riding on the popularity of the 1970s sword and sorcery craze the series starts out very close to the mythic Beowulf, but later veers wildly into the regions of science fiction and fantasy.  Only lasting six issues, it ran from May 1975 to March of 1976. Beowulf  begins in search of the monster Grendel, but take a detour into the Underworld where he rescues Nan-zee, a beautiful Swedish warrior from Demons who have been controlling her. Beowulf, Nan-Zee, and his fighting companions continue onwards towards Grendel but are again detoured, ending up in a bog where they now battle Swamp Men. More wild adventures follow as the warriors fall through a dimensional gateway where they eventually encounter many different adversaries across time and space. Dracula, a Lost Tribe of Israel, Ulysses, space aliens, and the Minotaur controlled by Satan were just a few villains wonderfully illustrated in Villamonte's lush style before the title unfortunately ended.