Number 501
Blue Tracer
Mad's Jerry De Fuccio paid Golden Age cartoonists to re-create past comic book stories. They were published in Cartoonist PROfiles magazine. This strip, redrawn by Fred Guardineer in 1975, was originally published in 1941.
My collection of Cartoonist PROfiles is spotty, and I have no other issues with these re-creations. Guardineer is gone now. De Fuccio was right to get him to do this work while he still could. It looks like in the years between 1941 and 1975 Guardineer's line lost none of its luster or precision. He may have been the most meticulous artist in all of comics until Charles Burns.
The only other one of these I've seen is the CC Beck DAREDEVIL but would love to see more. I ran across a big pile of The magazine recently at a used book store but not ONE had any of these re-creations!
ReplyDeleteWow! This is just about as insane as every other Blue Tracer story I've read. Fantastic. The truth is, I've never been a huge Guardineer fan, but seeing his work in black and white is something of a revelation. That splash is tremendous! Thanks, Pap!
ReplyDeleteThanks, I really enjoyed the pen work! It reminded me very much of the way certain Belgian artists such as Bob de Moor, et al., working on such titles as Blake & Mortimer, transmogrified their inking styles in the 60s and onwards.
ReplyDeleteIt's fascinating to see this kind of work … the congruences between classic American pen work & classic Francophone clair ligne!
Very good blog!
Mr. Singh, I could not have said it better. As a matter of fact, no one could! Thanks for the very well said observation.
ReplyDeleteBooksteve, I had that Beck Daredevil issue but like a fool I sold it on eBay.
Tamfos, I find Guardineer's art fascinating in the same way I find people with obsessive-compulsive disorder fascinating. I visualize him hunched over his drawing board making sure that every single line is perfect. And if it isn't, re-do it until it is.
i like the story. how if you look japan comic (manga). maybe u can more have inspiration.i like your comic very grade and good quality. i will save your link in my favorite page and i will visit your blog again. thanks
ReplyDeleteIf you can dig up any more of these Comics Command Performances, that would be great and make everyone like me ecstatic. Do you have any histories on these?
ReplyDelete