I imbibed the wonder of Hanna-Barbera's Jonny Quest when I was a wee tot. It was infused into my DNA through repeated viewings as it wondered around television during the 60's. Later it would resurface here and there and I made homemade tapes to enjoy the splendor. Finally a DVD came out and I snatched it up, one of the very first DVDs I ever bought as I made the painful migration from years of VHS. All this is to say that I'm a Jonny Quest fan through and through, so when I chance upon an article purporting to be the late great Doug Wildey talking about his masterpiece, I pay attention. So should you. Go here to find out more.
And here are some of Wildey's very best Quest comic book images.
And this poster is one I picked up decades ago. It rests on a wall across the room from where I'm typing this very message.
Doug Wildey's personal quest ended some years ago. Jonny's will never end as long as it lingers in the imaginations of those of us who imbibed from our flickering screens so many years ago.
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Just picked up a new dvd release of the first season at Walmart two weeks ago at the very reasonable price of $15. The later attempts at reviving the series are best ignored. I think I prefer the occasional look at the older Quest characters that The Venture Brothers engage in compared to anything but the first season.
ReplyDeleteI don't own the later versions of Quest. Like you say, they are weak versions of the original. Maybe some day, I'll pony up the entry fees.
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I bought the collection that came out some years ago and introduced my daughter to this classic. Watching them now, it strikes me how the stories sought the slow build up, which made things more realistic (some episodes more than others). Doug Wildey was a great drawer. From what I read somewhere, he is the one that introduced Alex Toth to the animation fold.
ReplyDeleteThe stories are downright scary because of the great pacing. Wildey is maybe the most influential artist no one's heard of -- certainly of his generation.
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I simply must get off my ass and pick up the JQ first season DVD--i.e., the 26 original episodes. (But what's this I hear about some episodes being edited for content, and nearly all episodes having incorrect closing credits?)
ReplyDeleteCan't speak to that. But as someone who used to hover to see them again and again, and cobbled together my own well-used VHS tape, I was delighted to get them in any form.
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