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| Author | Topic: Dynamic Duo Archive revisions |
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India Ink Member |
posted February 16, 2003 02:47 PM
 
What follows are my proposed revisions for any future printings of the BATMAN: DYNAMIC DUO ARCHIVES, volume I, correcting errors and omissions in the first printing... IP: Logged |
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India Ink Member |
posted February 16, 2003 02:55 PM
BATMAN: THE DYNAMIC DUO ARCHIVES Volume I copyright © 2003 DC Comics Original Editor: Julius Schwartz Researchers: Bill Wormstedt, Lou Mougin, Craig Delich, John Greb, Bill Wormstedt,
FOREWORD __________________________
BATMAN'S HOTLINE __________________________
TWO-WAY GEM CAPER! BATMAN'S GREAT FACE-SAVING FEAT! DETECTIVE COMICS # 328
BATMAN'S HOTLINE __________________________ DETECTIVE COMICS # 329
BATMAN # 165
__________________________ DETECTIVE COMICS # 330 THE FALLEN IDOL OF GOTHAM CITY! __________________________
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__________________________ DETECTIVE COMICS # 332 THE JOKER'S LAST LAUGH! __________________________ BATMAN # 167
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SHELDON MOLDOFF [ The above bio has been cobbled together using the exact wording IP: Logged |
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Craig Delich Member |
posted February 17, 2003 12:37 AM
quote: {REPLY FROM CRAIG DELICH}: Sheldon Moldoff's credits on Batman are as follows: He did backgrounds in 1939-40, then did NOTHING more on Batman until he began pencilling the strip from 1953-1968 and he did inks on the strip from 1958-1968. IP: Logged |
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Crazy Horse Member |
posted February 17, 2003 03:20 AM
quote: I don't have much to contribute to this thread, except to say "Thanks" to you, Mr. Delich, for all the great work you guys have done in keeping the KC conventions going. I live in KC myself. For what it's worth, I met Mr. Moldoff at a convention several years ago (in KC, of course), and I found that he seemed to have an extensive memory of the issues on which he worked. I brought a stack of Batman and Detective Comics from the late '50s and early 60's, and he carefully looked through the stack, picking out those issues which he though included his artwork, and happily autographing those issues for me. Several times, he stopped to reminisce fondly about the creation of a particular issue. I was much younger then, and I wish I remembered more of what he had to say. I later stopped collecting, and sold those comics. I wish I had kept them, as they may have some historical value now. Alas, I did not. The only one I remember him autographing is Detective Comics #325, which featured Catman. It would be interesting to check that against DC's records and see whether Mr. Moldoff's memory was correct. In any event, thanks again, Mr. Delich. Although I was away for several years (when I stopped collecting), I have greatly enjoyed the last few conventions I have attended. IP: Logged |
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Craig Delich Member |
posted February 17, 2003 10:41 AM
quote: {REPLY FROM CRAIG DELICH}: Yes, Shelly's memory was great and detailed. I talked with him for hours (you know, someone should have taped all this stuff for posterity sake)....I asked him, for example, "Why did you always sign your Hawkman covers for Flash Comics, but never your Flash covers?" He said that Shelly Mayer made that decision, for what reason he didn't know, but my guess is that because back then, artists often did more than ONE strip per book, and editors rarely allowed the artist to use his real name more than once in a single issue, hence pen names. IP: Logged |
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India Ink Member |
posted February 17, 2003 03:42 PM
Thanks for all your input Craig. I think the bio from BATMAN IN THE FIFTIES is closest to being accurate (this is the one that says "Born in 1920, Sheldon Moldoff broke into comics by assisting Bob Kane on BATMAN, beginning a collaboration that would last, off and on, for almost two decades" & "Sheldon Moldoff reunited with Bob Kane to ghost most of the BATMAN stories credited to Kane between 1954 and 1967"). It depends how you do the math, since I figure "off and on" the associaton between Bob Kane and Sheldon Moldoff covered a three decade period, although the total of years that Moldoff worked for Kane is less than twenty (spread over three different decades--30s, 50s, 60s). I put edited in biographical material from the other two sources (ALL-STAR COMPANION; BATMAN IN THE SIXTIES), because I wanted to flesh out the bio and get at some of the other things that Moldoff accomplished. However, the BATMAN IN THE SIXTIES bio is probably the most erroneous of the three since it has Moldoff working with Kane from 1943--and this clearly is false according to Moldoff's own statements on the matter. Clearly the SIXTIES folks mistook Lew Schwartz for Moldoff. Checking some of the art by both men, I can clearly tell a difference between the two. But I didn't want to fabricate my own bio for Sheldon since I didn't want to impose my own thoughts on the piece--I wanted to use exact wording that anyone could check for themselves. Of course I would expect DC to pay a qualified person such as yourself to write a proper bio for Moldoff to be included in the second printing of BATMAN: THE DYNAMIC DUO ARCHIVES, volume I. IP: Logged |
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whoswhoz New Member |
posted February 17, 2003 07:39 PM
quote: I'm pretty sure the 1943 date was a typo for 1953, not an actual confusion of artists. Moldoff started working for Kane in June 1953, which means, with the forward dating of comics and lead time for printing etc. that the first Moldoff stories probably appeared in January 1954 books. IP: Logged |
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Craig Delich Member |
posted February 18, 2003 12:05 AM
quote: I'm pretty sure the 1943 date was a typo for 1953, not an actual confusion of artists. Moldoff started working for Kane in June 1953, which means, with the forward dating of comics and lead time for printing etc. that the first Moldoff stories probably appeared in January 1954 books.[/B][/QUOTE] {REPLY FROM CRAIG DELICH: Moldoff's 1st pencilled piece in the BATMAN comic book was in Batman #81 (Feb-Mar. 1954) on "The Boy Wonder Confesses" (Stan Kaye inks); his first pencilled piece for DETECTIVE was in Detective #199 (Sept. 1953) on "The Invisible Batman" (Stan Kaye & Ray Burnley inks); and his 1st pencilled work in WORLD'S FINEST was in World's Finest #68 (Jan-Feb 1954) on "The Secret Weapons of the Crimesmith" (w/Paris inks). IP: Logged |
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India Ink Member |
posted February 19, 2003 02:43 PM
Thanks again, Craig. Although I'm partial to Sprang & Infantino, the more I look at Moldoff (which I've been doing a lot of lately) the more I come to like his approach to Batman. I was thumbing through my old copy of Batman from the 30s to the 70s and enjoying the art all over again. But I have a hard time trying to put my finger on what it is that I like about Sheldon Moldoff. With Sprang and Infantino it's obvious, but Moldoff-- IP: Logged |
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whoswhoz New Member |
posted February 19, 2003 08:50 PM
quote: I'm pretty sure Detective 199 is by Lew Schwartz, but we can argue about that later. I don't see how Moldoff can start in June and have work in a September dated book, which came out in July. IP: Logged |
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Craig Delich Member |
posted February 22, 2003 01:13 AM
quote: {REPLY FROM CRAIG DELICH}: No, Detective #199's story IS by Moldoff.....Shelly verified it and Schwartz, who was at the same show with Shelly, backed that up, stating categorically that it was NOT his, but Moldoff's. IP: Logged |
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whoswhoz New Member |
posted February 23, 2003 10:00 AM
quote: OK, it was the Burnley inks that threw me. (plus the dates). I'm amazed that DC's lead time was that short back then. Of course, the books were being printed in Connecticut back then, which helped. Bob Hughes IP: Logged |
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India Ink Member |
posted February 25, 2003 08:50 PM
I'm giving this a bump up in case Bob Greenberger has missed this topic. Hopefully he'll respond on this matter. IP: Logged |
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James Friel Member |
posted February 25, 2003 08:58 PM
I wouldn't count on that, especially if he's received pressure (or outright instructions) not to be quite so forthcoming with us. IP: Logged |
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India Ink Member |
posted February 25, 2003 09:11 PM
True, James, but I'm trying to stay optimistic on this question. If DC and Bob actually did right and there's a reasonable explanation for the credit problems (as far-fetched as that seems), then I'm hoping Bob will 'fess up and say they made a mistake. Of course if there's continuing silence on this issue we'll have to assume that the lawyers are in control of reprint policy. And I'll have to contend with more migraines and fits of depression. IP: Logged |
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James Friel Member |
posted February 25, 2003 09:17 PM
Lookon the bright side, India. It's completely possible that DC is discussing or negotiating with Moldoff and the Kane estate, and simply feels that it would be unwise to comment until some agreement is reached. IP: Logged |
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India Ink Member |
posted February 25, 2003 09:51 PM
Yes, this is what I hope is the actual case--what I assume to be the case given the facts in evidence. A year ago, DC had no problem crediting Moldoff, so these must be immediate problems and likely owing to delicate negotiations. It's just the misfortune of the DD archives to be caught in this circumstance. The archive itself gives evidence of this, as the contents pages have errors on cover dates for certain issues. And the second page of biographies has a space missing in the second column. This leads me to believe that changes were made in haste while the archive was in production and before some aspects of layout could be changed or were changed without due care and attention. This doesn't explain why Schwartz didn't get due credit (on the facing page of the frontispiece) or other errors in judgement, but it does lead me to believe that the changes were a rush job. And hopefully we'll see revisions in a future printing--or on sticky page inserts. IP: Logged |
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India Ink Member |
posted March 10, 2003 12:33 AM
bump for those new to this subject IP: Logged |
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