Number 1320: It’s George Washington’s birthday, and I cannot tell a lie...

Marvelo, who is here from the first issue of Big Shot Comics (1940), was another in a big crowd of tuxedo-wearing, finger-waggling magicians riding on Mandrake the Magician’s coat-tails, who made magical things happen in early comics. With the magic word, "Kalora!" and some gesturing Marvelo can make an armored car fall apart. And he can bring a statue of George Washington to life, so the granite representation of the first American president can haul a couple of thugs to jail.

The story is drawn by Fred Guardineer of Action Comics’ Zatara fame (another magician). Fred's artwork brings a precision to each figure, vehicle, building, ink line. I believe that based on his artwork he could not turn in a job until every panel appeared just...so...and just right to his exacting eye. Fred left comic books after a point and went to work for the U.S. Post Office, where precise thinking is a necessity in getting thousands of pieces of mail where they’re supposed to go.

And that’s no lie.

And to our first POTUS, happy 281st birthday, George Washington!

Number 1319: Beany and Cecil and the big blue brute

Jack Bradbury, the cartoonist-animator, drew this story of Beany and Cecil. The characters were originally hand puppets created by Bob Clampett, starring in their own early television show.

You can view a web site devoted to Bradbury’s comic book works at jbrad.org. There's another story from the issue in which today’s tale appears in Pappy’s #1113.

From Dell Four Color comic #414, Beany and Cecil (1952):

Number 1318: Hanging around with the Black Hood

I haven’t shown a Black Hood story in a year-and-a-half, since Pappy's #1003. Go there and then use the links I’ve scattered about for more Black Hoodiness.

This particular tale, with its violent and morbid splash panel, is from Pep Comics #49 (1944). The issue opens up with an Archie story. Until Archie took over MLJ entirely and the superheroes retired it was common to have violent, graphic stuff next to the relatively benign Archie stories of teenage hijinks.

The “House That Crime Built,” using the gimmick of a house narrating, is drawn by Clem Weisbecker and Pen Shumaker.

Number 1316: Pappy's tastes change, and oh, the Wonder of it all

As part of my ongoing growth as a Golden Age comic book fan, Wonder Comics #11 (1947) fits in. I bought it in 1978 (paid about $6.00 as I recall), and hated it. I bought it for the Graham Ingels cover, and noticed there was a Graham Ingels face on the girl (right side of the “Wonderman” double-page spread), but the rest of the comic seemed dopey to me; also goofy, silly, stupid...

But that was then and this is now, and I don’t even have to go back as far as 1978 for the change. It has happened recently, within the past couple of years, when I saw the things that formerly offended me now pleased me. I like Wonder Comics #11 for exactly the same reasons I hated it 34 years ago.

Personally, I now like a comic book where an outer space villain, Dr. Voodoo, wears a string tie. I like that another character looks like a smiley-face with a strangely shaped head. I like that the method of planet-hopping isn't by rocket ship, but by something called a “Vacuum Spiral.” Perhaps my change in tastes is that I am still evolving as a comic book reader — or, based on your opinions of my personal tastes, devolving.

I showed another oddball story from this issue in Pappy's #1090 in January, 2012, “Dick Devens of Futuria.”

Art by Bob Oksner.