Tuesday 29 January 2008

Whoopee!! number 1 part 2

Its funny the free gift was a skull head squirt ring. So Whoopee had a bit of fun horror in it already before it merged with Shiver and Shake. With strips like The Ghost Train, Evil eye and King Arthur and his Frights of the round table. Ironic two fun horror strips didn't make it in the merge...The Ghost Train and King Arthur and his Frights of the round table. The artists Brian Walker 'The Ghost Train' now drew Scream Inn and Robert Nixon 'King Arthur' now drew Frankie Stein for Whoopee and Shiver and Shake.










Whoopee!! number 1

This is my favourite IPC comic with many great characters. Here is the 1st issue and what a read 40 pages for 5p in 1974 (the year I was born!). The cover was unusual with the character Evil Eye written in bold (would it put off parents?) and Ad Lad. The comic was in the same shape as Cor!! Thin and many pages. You see the start of Bumpkin Billionaire's...Toy Boy which stay throughout Whoopee's run and beyond in Whizzer and chips. Whoopee!! lasted for 11 years...and I felt sad when it merged with Whizzer and chips in 1985.

More to come...
























Monday 28 January 2008

Tom Paterson- Wet Blanket and Laughing Planet

I did a Tom Paterson fansite a while ago. But since then I've discovered more of his work. From the early Oink comic 1986 a great strip Wet Blanket Master of Misery! Just like Tom's other character from The Dandy Hyde and Shriek where ever he walks he leaves a trail of fungi the Wet Blanket leaves a trail of dampness. Love the background details...like the various little Nickets. :)












The laughing Planet another newish discovery for me. I liked it so much I bought the whole of 1991 Dandy comics from ebay. Love the big posters Tom did. See the Laughing Planet in the new Beano and Dandy 70 years book Crazy about creatures.

Tom is at his best in black and white before the comic went all colour. There was more zany detail and jokes squeezed into each panel.

I like many comic artists. But Tom has to be the best(and Leo Baxendale ..Jack Edward Oliver..Dudley..etc its hard to have one favourite..). I'm trying to collect all his work from the 80's to early 90's which is his best work. Though still very good now on Minnie in The Beano. Though prefer his work with loads of witty background details and more zany plots like these.

Here the website I did showing more of Tom's comic work.
http://uk.geocities.com/pjgtompatterson/

Sunday 27 January 2008

Les Barton Sparky your Great Grandfather read this








Les Barton drew I Spy in Sparky early 70's and the numbskullish super strip
Ma Kelly's Telly...little men inside a telly.
In the Sparky book 1973 he has done a wonderful piece showing what a Sparky comic of Victorian times looked like. Thr paper colour the cross hatching the wording all suit the mood.

Wonderful the characters being Victorianised. Like Invisible Dick with his torch now a lantern. Ma Kelly's Telly now a magic lantern as of course there was no telly in those days. Loved the new joke about the chicken crossing the road. :)

Saturday 26 January 2008

Jimmy Glen's Dennis the Menace fan club page




Jimmy is best known for drawing Grandpa and Lord Snooty in the 70's and 80's Beano.

In the 90's Jimmy drew Dennis the Menace fan club page.
Fun layouts to show photos of readers, letters and drawing the jokes all within one picture.


Todays Beano letter page which is very samey to me could learn from this...every week it was new and fun.A comic page in its own right.

Friday 25 January 2008

Jack Clayton a real joker

Jack Clayton drew for Cheeky, Jackpot and Buster comic.
He did the wonderful joke page Hit the Jackpot! Where so much detail was put in the backgrounds...that sometimes the backgrounds were funnier than the jokes. He liked drawing little mice (Mickey types), cats, dogs and snails ...small animals. He was also great at drawing the over reaction the groan from a character. Almost falling backwards. Paddywack had this effect a lot.

His first work was in Cheeky late 70's where the kids recreate a scene for there home video. You can see how the kids did it with home made props and costumes. Again lots of funny details. Paddywack came later in Cheeky and even became when the comics merged the cover star of Whoopee!!.

I know he was called Jack Clayton because a reader asked the artist name in Do me a favour Buster!

Anyone know anything else about Jack Clayton let me know in the comments