Timmy the Timid Ghost, despite being one of the many characters created with hopes of following the fabulous success of Casper, had a very respectable 43 issue, 11 year run. Al Fago did most of the Timmy issues, but this story and cover was done by Jon D'Agostino; whose nearly half-century career covered every genre of comic book work (including, most notably, great work for Archie Comics). D'Agostino passed away in 2010.
These two ad pages are from the same issue.
I want to be Tumulto when I grow up ! A Magician who paints~ wonderful ! I still own a vinyl record that teaches 1-2 cha cha cha ! (among other Learn To albums from that period). Nice little details in this one~ and it flows quickly page to page. I never would have bought this as a Kid~ but~ I am so glad you shared this with us 'Adults' !
ReplyDeleteI wonder how Timmy died. According the the animated series, Casper got hit by a train.
ReplyDeleteKW: Hey ! Timmy's IMDB bio says he was an apprentice Engineer with Casey Jones !
ReplyDeleteLysdexicuss: I think you have hit the nail on the head: D'Agostino's page layout and flow were one of his strongest assests. Plus, I'm a sucker for the big, thick line.
ReplyDeleteKW: I think Harvey's (comics) official stance on Casper was that he was a "sprite," or something like that, with no mortal history. Certainly, Timmy's history was strictly ghost.
Casper never died in the comics. He was "born" a ghost. He had a mother in the early comics!
ReplyDeleteThe live action movie he died. He got sick playing in the snow at night!
I always thought of Timmy as the ghost of a bug for some reason, I guess cuz he kind of looks like an ant maybe?
ReplyDeleteThis is just the sort of crappy, disposable comic I love! So simple, yet so delightful. In case you can't tell which ghost "Timmy" is, he's the one with the giant "T" on his chest. Great!
ReplyDeleteOh, how I wish Charlton was around when I was starting my "career". So much freedom, such low expectations.
Mykal, have you ever seen any of John Byrne's "Wheelie and the Chopper Bunch"? Weird stuff, in context.
Bill: I haven't seen Wheelie and Chopper Bunch. I'm going to have to look that up!
ReplyDeleteCartooning style is nice here, but not much on backgrounds. Like the color work -- a rarity for Charlton, which had terrible coloring/printing.
ReplyDeleteGary: Agreed about the backgrounds, but somehow (probably because of the simple cartooning) it works for me. I agree about the coloring as well Those nearly monochromatic panels really are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteIf I remember correctly, the first cartoons of Casper showed he was a little boy who died. Not 100% sure, though. Early 50s or mid-50s.
ReplyDeleteGary-
ReplyDeleteNo, Casper wasn't a "dead boy" until the feature film. The Paramount shorts glossed over the matter, but Harvey Comics official line was that ghosts were "Magical Creatures". Harvey couldn't afford to upset the Bible Belt and the Comics Code with comics featuring "supernatural creatures".