This is another one of the “Red Hot” Blaze tales. “Red Hot” Blaze is a Simon and Kirby character, a freelance reporter who sells stories to Headline Comics. In this story he tells the story of a mystery: who shot Carl Nissen? Also, why is the radio playing loud dance music when the sheriff shows up at the scene of the crime?
For me, as former ninth grade spelling bee champion, the crime in this story is the constant misspelling of the word “sheriff” as “sherriff.”I grit my teeth to see the word misspelled several times. I don’t even know if I should blame letterer Howard Ferguson, or the person who wrote the script (perhaps Jack Kirby?)
Grand Comics Database attributes both penciling and inking by Jack Kirby. From Headline Comics #24 (1947):
So, instead of using the time to burglarize before any resident returned, Reed used it to diagnose and repair the radio, on a theory that it would conceal the noises of his burglary after a resident returned, with that resident settling down without coming to the room containing the valuables, and imagining that the radio had just started working on its own. Gosh, if I didn't know that this were a True Crime-Never-Pays Case then I'd never believe it!
ReplyDeletePurple men's suits seem to have been much more in-fashion in the '40s than I would have guessed.
I sympathize with your discomfort over the misspelling. The recurring abominations that I see now-a-days are “woah” and “definetly”.
I like these early Simon/Kirby jobs, Kirby's style is already so set in stone, in back in the late 40s.
ReplyDeleteI like how nobody, including the victims, thought to turn off the radio!
I don't know if I'd risk my life on my counting ability in a stressful situation!
Well, woah there, Daniel. I am still stuck on the old favorites, like "your" for you are, or "are" for our. I just had an idea. I think smart phones (if they are really "smart")should tell the text-writing person that their message will not go through unless they change the spelling of a word. But then no texts would ever go through, because spelling and grammar are not what people are thinking about when texting.
ReplyDeleteApparently it was never a dream of yours, like me, of wearing a snazzy purple suit. With a green fedora, of course. Sartorial splendor! I am thinking of the song, "My Conviction" from Hair:
I would just like to say that it is my conviction
That longer hair and other flamboyant affectations
Of appearance are nothing more
Than the male's emergence from his drab camoflage
Into the gaudy plumage
Which is the birthright of his sex
There is a peculiar notion that elegant plumage
And fine feathers are not proper for the male
When ac---tually
That is the way things are
In most species
Daniel, P.S. I cut, copied and pasted the song lyrics from Hair from a online site. I noticed after it appeared that "camouflage" is misspelled. It's not my fault, and I thought I would explain it so I would not be thought of as a common misspeller.
ReplyDeleteWhew. I hope that will save me a note from you that I have screwwed up.