Roger Armstrong - Four Color, July 1950

Roger Armstrong, who died in 2007, drew for Western Publishing for five decades, rendering an impressive menagerie of Disney and Warner characters in his tenure. As can be seen in the story below, his style is beautifully relaxed and superbly composed.

Recently, friend John Kricfalusi (JohnK), expressed an interest in seeing more from this artist. I've learned so much about what makes good cartooning from John's outstanding blog that I am only too happy to oblige. This story comes from Four Color #284, July 1950. Armstrong did the cool cover as well.

Dick Moores - 1949 Four Color

This story from Four Color, January 1949; is the work of comic strip legend, Dick Moores. Moores' beautiful rendering first caught the attention of Chester Gould in the mid 1930s. Moores did backgrounds and lettered Gould's iconic Dick Tracy strip between 1932 and 1936. During the 1940s and 50s, Moores inked Fred Gottfredson's Micky Mouse strip as well drawing other Disney characters (including Brer Rabbit, showcased here in a full-length comic book story).

Moores is best remembered, however, for drawing Gasoline Alley, taking over the helm from creator, Frank King, in 1959 and continuing until his death in 1986.

Moores also is responsible for this cool inside cover. 

The Tell-A-Tale of Buster Bulldozer

Today we have the tale of Buster Bulldozer, who learns over the course of the story the value of teamwork. Catherine Danner wrote this simple but very effective tale; and Mary Alice Stoddard did the illustration.

I love Stoddard's fluffy, beautifully composed work here - so rich and round. I haven't been able to find out much biographical detail about the artist, which I feel bad about. She was a fairly prolific illustrator of children's books, working from the late 1930s until the early 1950s. As far as I can find out, this work may be among her last. This title, Buster Bulldozer, is a Whitman Tell-A-Tale book published in 1952.