Hi, Kids! Today we have a fun (and funny) story from a couple of old pros, Don. R. Christensen (script) and Tony Strobl (art), and a glorious cover by Ralph Heimdahl (pencils and perhaps inks as well).
Don R. Christensen was primarily a scriptwriter for Disney at the start of his career in the 30s and wound-up leaving Disney for Warner Brothers’ animation and then on to a career as a comic book artist in the 40s (where he often signed his work “Don Arr”), specializing in funny animal kids’ comics.
Tony Strobl is best known for his comic book work after WWII, so much of it drawing Disney characters and stories. Here we see Mr. Strobl proving his value with a Warner Brother’s character, Bugs Bunny! As always, his artwork is crisp, clean, and dramatic. I laughed at loud at the way Goo Goo gorilla-handled that crook!
But first, let’s enjoy the pretty cover. All comes from Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies No. 125 (March 1952)
Mykal:
ReplyDeleteThe combo of Don R. Christensen and Tony Strobl was always a special one for me because, in later years, I’d gotten to know them both - and told them how much I loved their work. Something, alas in their near-perpetual anonymity, they didn’t hear anywhere near enough!
Don told me that he’s written over 300 (!) stories for Bugs Bunny… and my years of research would seem to bear that out!
There was no one better on Bugs Bunny than Tony, back when he inked and lettered his own work - as your post shows!
Glad to see you’ve returned to this Blog! There aren’t all that many folks doing “the kind of thing we do” anymore, and we need all that we can get!
Good to hear from you again, Joe. I'm glad to be back. About Strobl, yes, indeed - one of the all time greats, whether doing Disney characters or Warner Brothers. Such great stuff. And what I love about Christensen was, from what I can gather from my research, he primarily began as writer then began drawing later in his career - and he was such a great cartoonist! Like you, I like to archive and discuss that golden era of cartooning whenever possible. So many greats are fading from memory.
DeleteBy the way, Joe. I've seen our name pop up on some the Disney Masters volumes from Fantagraphics I've been picking up. Such a great series of books! Excellent work, sir!
Thank you for those very kind words, Mykal!
DeleteIn terms of quality, the Disney Masters line from Fantagraphics is just about as good as ANYTHING gets! It’s a project that I’m very proud to be associated with!
The line has given much-belated and well-deserved recognition to Paul Murry, for the classic string of Mickey Mouse serials - and to one of my all-time favorite comic book series, Gold Key’s “The Phantom Blot” (1964-1966)! Contributing to THAT volume especially was a dream come true! Not only a background text article, but I even got to “title” some of the originally untitled one-page Blot gags! Imagine what it must feel like to actually “give name” to something you loved in your childhood - and well beyond! There are literally no words for such a feeling!
Beyond Paul Murry, Disney Masters keeps us connected to other international “Masters” such as Romano Scarpa, Giorgio Cavazzano, Massimo De Vita, and Luciano Bottaro (the later one of the wildest creators ever to draw a Disney Duck)!
Finally, back to Tony Strobl (a true “Master” in his own right), let’s not forget that he was probably the very best comic artist to draw The Jetsons! That doesn’t get mentioned nearly as often as it should!
Keep up the great work!
With regard to the Fantagraphic volumes I have so far collected volumes 1, 3, and 4 – the 3rd volume covering Murry’s glorious work AND your great article. Keep up the good work yourself, Joe. I’ll be collecting them all eventually.
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