The Adventures Of Private Olsen

With all his years in comics, young Jimmy Olsen, a healthy lad, must at one point served in the United States Armed Forces... 

...and he did, in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #23 (September, 1957), under this cover by Curt Swan and Ray Burnley!

The Adventures Of Private Olsen

Here, in this tale by Otto Binder, Curt Swan and Ray Burnley, Jimmy goes on a story for the Daily Planet, to find out what it's like to be in the army, getting a little help from Superman and his friend, Colonel Otis.  Going undercover as Private Hudson, Sgt. Blye decides to make a little money off the boy, by betting he'd fail, but also hedging his bet by making everyone else think he's a general's son, who would be a natural soldier. 

 

Superman comes in to help Jimmy succeed, and even Sgt. Blye comes around at the end, as Jimmy nearly gets launched into space, looking for the bet money Blye had collected.  Jimmy decides army life isn't for him, and goes back to do his story for Perry White.

Charles M. Schulz 100

Celebrating what would have been cartoonist Charles M. Schulz's 100th birthday!  (November 26, 1922 to February 12, 2000).

Creator of the Peanuts comic strip, that introduced the world to Charles and Sally Brown, Schroeder, Snoopy, Linus and Lucy Van Pelt, Woodstock, Peppermint Patty, Marcie, Franklin and so much more, taking a look at life though a child's eyes, and having a smile while doing it.

The strips ended in January, 2000, followed soon after by their creator, but they will live on in our hearts and minds (and even recent collections by BOOM! studios, and thanks to their animated specials, it is hard to celebrate Halloween, Thanksgiving or Christmas without the Peanuts gang. .

 

Have A Fantastic Thanksgiving

For all those who are able to spent this holiday with their families, and those thinking of those families, may you all have something to be thankful four...er, for, not unlike the Fantastic Four!

Here, the cover to Fantastic Four #564 (April, 2009) by Bryan Hitch, with Reed and Sue presenting a turkey to those they love for the holiday, in a cover that is evocative of a Norman Rockwell painting (and the JSA had done one like that too, as you can see here!).

Happy Thanksgiving!

Remembering Artist Steve Lightle

Remembering artist Steve Lightle (November 19, 1959 - January 8, 2021) on his birthday with the covers to the Cosmic Boy mini-series from December, 1986 to March, 1987, with Cosmic Boy and Night Girl discovering a secret hidden by the Time Trapper...

...that would later rock the Legion of Super-Heroes to its core.

Cosmic Boy #1 and #2 (December, 1986 and January, 1987)

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Cosmic Boy #3 and #4 (February, 1987 and March, 1987)

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This led to one of the saddest stories of the post-Crisis Legion era, featuring Superboy, with Steve also providing the first cover to the story's end with Legion of Super-Heroes #37 (August, 1987).

Remembering Artist Darwyn Cooke

Remembering artist Darwyn Cooke on his birthday (November 16, 1962 - May 14, 2016), with a look at a few covers to an often overlooked series...

...that of Star Spangled War Stories, featuring the G.I. Zombie, soldier Jared Kabe, who fights and dies for his country, again and again, aided by fellow soldier, Carmen King.

Star Spangled War Stories #1 and #2 (September and October, 2014)

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Star Spangled War Stories #3 and #4 (December, 2014 and January, 2015)

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Star Spangled War Stories #5 and #6 (February and March, 2015)

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America At War - The Best Of DC War Comics

 

Celebrating those who served in the United States Armed Forces, a look at the war comics that were published by DC Comics from the 1940s to the 1970s, via America At War - The Best Of DC War Comics, which is a Fireside book released for October, 1979, collected by Michael Uslan, with this Joe Kubert cover featuring Sgt. Rock.

This book breaks down DC's war heroes by decade, so that's what will happen here.

1940s

Where it all began with World War II, this section features Blackhawk with his origin from Military Comics #1 (August, 1941), Hop Harrigan from All-American Comics #48 (March, 1943), Boy Commandos from Detective Comics #82 (December, 1943), Superman from Superman #25 (November-December, 1943), as well as a cover to Boy Commandos #4 (Fall, 1943) and a run from the Superman newspaper strip where Clark Kent joins the army.

Blackhawk and the Boy Commandos have been covered before, this Superman was the one who was in the JSA, and Hop Harrigan was a young pilot (who had associations with the Justice Society as well, and was America's Ace of the Airways, even being in his own movie serial).

1950s

Next up, a group of tales including one from Our Army At War #67 (February, 1958), with Sgt. Rock from Our Army At War #83 (June, 1959), Gunner & Sarge from Our Fighting Forces #49 (September, 1959), and Mademoiselle Marie from Star Spangled War Stories #87 (November, 1959), with covers from G. I. Combat #54 (November, 1957) and Our Fighting Forces (September, 1959).

Thankfully, Sgt. Rock, Gunner & Sarge and Mlle. Marie have all already been covered...

..including times that they have teamed up together.

1960s

Continuing on, with covers from Our Army At War #112 (November, 1961) and Our Fighting Forces #102 (August, 1966), as well as stories from G. I. Combat #87 (April-May, 1961) with the World War II's Haunted Tank, World War I Enemy Ace from Showcase #57 (July-August, 1965), Sgt. Rock and Easy from Our Army At War #160 (November, 1965), the War That Time Forgot from Star Spangled War Stories #134 (August-September, 1967) and Captain Hunter from Our Fighting Forces #102 (August, 1966).

The Haunted Tank, Enemy Ace and the War That Time Forgot all were previously covered...

...and Captain Hunter was Phil Hunter, a Green Beret looking for his brother, Nick, in 1960s Vietnam, as DC takes war beyond World War II. 

1970s

Finishing up in the decade this volume was printed, with stories from Our Army At War #235 (August, 1971), Our Army At War #233 (June, 1971), Star Spangled War Stories #183 (November-December, 1974), and Weird War Tales #3 (January-February, 1972) and covers from Army At War #1 (October-November, 1978), Our Army At War #233 (June, 1971) and Star Spangled War Stories #183 (November-December, 1974).

Mostly generic war stories, with one Sgt. Rock, and a story of the Unknown Soldier, who has been covered before...

....all with the hopes of war no more.

Celebrating Artist Barry Kitson

Wishing artist Barry Kitson the happiest of birthdays today, and treating fans with a look at the covers for some of his greatest work, that of the covers to the 12 issue mini-series, JLA: Year One, starting with the wraparound cover to the first tradepaperback with all the issues from July, 1999, featuring the origins of the JLA in their earliest days (but, through a post-Crisis lens, with Black Canary replacing a not yet existing Wonder Woman as a charter member..., and Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman and Martian Manhunter as the other charter members, with Superman, Batman, Green Arrow, Atom, the Doom Patrol and more as guest stars).

JLA: Year One #1 (January, 1998)

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JLA: Year One (#2 and #3, February and March 1998)

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JLA: Year One (#4 and #5, April and May 1998)

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JLA: Year One (#6 and #7, June and July 1998)

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JLA: Year One (#8 and #9, August and September 1998)

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JLA: Year One (#10 and #11, October and November 1998)

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JLA: Year One (#12 and Deluxe Edition, December 1998 and July 2017)

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These aren't Barry's only later day trips to DC's modernized Silver Age, but more later!

Time For The JSA

As time ticks down, like the sands of an hourglass, so too do the variations of a classic cover, featuring the Justice Society.

Take a look below, as we head down covers featuring the Justice Society Of America, and their timely foe, Per Degaton.

All-Star Companion #4 (April, 2017)

Jerry Ordway supplied this cover for a publication covering the history of the Justice Society, with this volume focused on other teams inspired by the Justice Society, like the Seven Soldiers of Victory and the Invaders, as well as a little on Earth-2 in the 1980s with Infinity, Inc. and a look at the 1980s version of Secret Origins.

History in the pages!

JSA #72 (June, 2005)

Alex Ross supplied this stunning cover for the JSA, as the original team and the modern team work together to fight the time machinations of Per Degaton, including members like Power Girl, Jakeem and Johnny Thunder, the original Atom and Flash and more!

An epic battle for the ages!

America Vs. The Justice Society #4 (April, 1985)

Back to Jerry Ordway again, with the stunning conclusion to a historical look back at the career of the Justice Society, framed on with a court trial from accusations made in the dead Batman's diary, with Huntress and Robin leading the investigations to disprove what he did.

All while Per Degaton rages!

 

 

All-Star Comics #35 (June-July, 1947)

The original. by Irwin Hasen, wherein the Justice Society of America has their first battle with Per Degaton, the master manipulator of time, who would spent many decades just washing those test tubes as his attempted manipulations of time would fail.

See you in the funny pages!