The Summer Of The Action-Heroes!

We looked at Steve Ditko's Captain Atom a few months ago. Now it's finally time to check out the rest of Charlton's "Action-Heroes" including Ditko's greatest creation for this era -- the "New" Blue Beetle. The Action-Heroes were a concoction of editor Dick Giordano, a longtime artist at Charlton who assumed the duties in the late 60's replacing Pat Masulli. Many of the heroes actually started their runs during Masulli's tenure, but it was Giordano who pulled them together and gave them focus as a line. Superheroes were hot, and Charlton had bitten hard with the introduction of Sarge Steel, The Fightin' Five, Blue Beetle, Son of Vulcan, and a revival of Captain Atom. They added to this roster Thunderbolt and Judomaster and Peacemaker. The group reached its apogee when Ditko revised Blue Beetle into a form more fitting to Giordano's vision of low-powered heroes, and finally the addition of The Question. 

Not unlike Tower's THUNDER Agents (which will be getting a glimpse this summer - more below), the "Action-Heroes" was an attempt to make the stories more immediate and close-to-home, response to the wild and wacky Silver Age DC material and the increasingly cosmic Marvel epics which were dominating the comic racks. This was an attempt to carve out a niche, and it was a successful one, at least critically. Eventually the line failed to find sufficient sales, but Giordano had been noticed by DC, and they scooped him up and added him to their editorial line-up as well as the artistic one. Along with him they took on talents Steve Ditko, Pat Boyette, Frank McLaughlin, Steve Skeates, Denny O'Neil, and Jim Aparo. More on this later. 

Years later DC would scoop up the actual "Action-Heroes" themselves and make them a part of the larger DCU. So that's the plan. I want to look at the characters who inspired this blog to begin with, yet again.

And as an added bonus, the THUNDER Agents will be on hand on Saturdays through June and July. The Tower Comics and the Charlton Comics of this time were among the most creative and ultimately successful of the cavalcade of wannabe heroes who arrived in the wake of Marvel's success and the earth-shaking TV hit Batman.  

So prepare for the "Summer of the Action-Heroes"! 

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Repent Prankster!

The Prankster was a one-shot back-up hero who has a lot of charm, mostly because of the delicious artwork of Jim Aparo. As you can see above this wacky yarn deals with a colorful hero who is a freedom fighter in the dystopic city of Ultropolis which is ruled by a ruthless dictator named Bane. 

The Prankster was created by "Sergius O'Shaugnessy" (Denny O'Neil) and Jim Aparo for what turned out to be the final issue of Charlton's Thunderbolt, issue #60. No more T-Bolt, and alas no more Prankster would ever be created for the Derby Publisher. We would never know about "The Vengeance of the Wratt!". 

The Prankster though clearly seems to have been inspired by Harlan Ellison's classic short story "'Repent Harlequin!' Said the Ticktockman" which was first published in Galaxy in 1965.

It was adapted to comics in 1975 in the third issue of Marvel's Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction. The story was adapted by Roy Thomas and drawn in his own highly exotic style by Alex Nino. I love Nino generally, but I find his storytelling lacking here, much too difficult to follow. I'll take Jim Aparo's more straightforward approach anytime. But that's not all. 

"'Repent Harlequin!' Said the Ticktockman!" is maybe my favorite Harlan Ellison story. As a parable of the modern day this dystopic tale captures the soul-destroying incessant race to nowhere which typifies most of modern life it reminds us, one and all that apple carts are made mostly to be upturned. It's the best way for any of us, all of us to find ourselves and others in a reality which seems increasingly bent on its own self-immolation. I savor the jellybeans the Harlequin sends down in a rain of delirious nonsensical pointlessness save for the utter necessity of pointlessness itself. Jim Steranko caught some aspect of that always instant in time when he attempted to capture the sheer madness of the story and convert it images which made you feel the same sort of thing.

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Action-Heroes Day!

Dick Giordano was born on this date in 1932. Giordano began his career as an artist, working for Charlton Comics for many years. In the late 60's when superheroes were all the rage, he assumed the role of editor of the comics line. His goal was to create not "super-heroes" so much as what he called "Action-Heroes". These would be heroes, but people with skills and not so much power. Later Giordano was an editor at DC and was a partner with Neal Adams in the art firm Continuity Associates. 

Dick Giordano became editor of Charlton Comics after Pat Masulli. Giordano had made his mark with Sarge Steel, a hard-nosed detective turned super-spy. His artwork was always crisp and attractive. Shifting to the editor's desk, he surveyed the landscaped and decided that if Charlton were to make a move into the superhero market, they would need to find a way to make their heroes distinctive. Some heroes were already around and might need adjusting and new fresh heroes were needed. 

The line-up consisted of Frank McLaughlin's creation Rip Jagger, a WWII soldier who becomes a deadly master of martial arts Judomaster, who battles the Japanese forces in the Pacific Theater with his young partner Tiger. Peter Cannon - The Thunderbolt created by Pete Morisi, is a man trained by Tibetan monks and is possessed of fantastic skills and powers of the mind. Christopher Smith, the Peacemaker created by Pat Boyette and Joe Gill, is a diplomat who realizes that talk alone will fail to solve all problems and uses his technology to fight when necessary to preserve the peace. Giordano inherited Captain Atom, created by Joe Gill and Steve Ditko a decade before. Giordano had the good Captain's vast powers muchly diminished, and Steve Ditko was all too happy to do so. Added to the Captain Atom cast was Charlton's lone female super-heroine of the era, Nightshade. We learn more about her when Steve Skeates and Jim Aparo take over. 

The line-up was completed by the arrival of Steve Ditko's "All-New" Blue Beetle. Ted Kord becomes a Blue Beetle who is not reliant on a magical scarab but who turns to modern technology and fisticuffs to bring villains to heel. With the arrival of Blue Beetle the "Action-Hero" line was complete, just in time for it all to end. Sales were not what everyone hoped for and the super-hero craze which allowed for this flowering of talent and creations withered. The arrival of a new fresh look for Charlton, the big "C" which would in a few years be replaced by the famous Charlton Bullseye badge, marked both the height and the end of the "Action-Hero" line.

Dick Giordano went to DC and took many of his most talented artists with him. He found great success at DC, sticking with the company for decades. DC purchased the "Action-Heroes", mostly as a gift to Giordano, the editor who had made these fondly remembered heroes possible. As we all likely know, the "Action-Heroes" formed the basis for Alan Moore's and Dave Gibbon's The Watchmen, which originally began as a vehicle for the classic Charlton characters, before DC decided to save them for other things. Hence the "Action-Heroes" live on. 

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Peter Cannon - Thunderbolt Day!

Pete Morisi, better known as P.A.M. was born on this day in 1928. Morisi was a key artist at Charlton and other small publishers, and he created some lasting characters including the focus of today's Dojo celebration -- Peter Cannon -The Thunderbolt. 

Peter Cannon, The Thunderbolt is the singular creation of Pete Morisi, an artist better known by the sobriquet of "P.A.M.". Morisi was a policeman for much of his career and that job forbid moonlighting so according to stories he obscured his artistic identity. 

What he could never hide was his distinctive style. A fan of the great George Tuska, Morisi took the particular look of Tuska and refined it even more giving his own work an almost ethereal look. More than most artists, Morisi's images looked like stolen moments in time.

In Thunderbolt he concocted a hero who combined some of the look of the Golden Age Daredevil and the origin of the Golden Age Amazing Man to offer up a low-key hero for the modern age. Peter Cannon was a cool customer and entered the fray with aplomb and absolute confidence, using the skills he'd gained in a remote monastery to protect people in the modern world. He was assisted by a friend named Tabu and often confronted by a foe dubbed the Hooded One, a villain who shared some of T-Bolt's remote origins.

Thunderbolt shifted over to DC during the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" and even had a series for a time at DC, but ownership of the character reverted to Morisi and his estate. The series lasted twelve issues from 1993 into 1994. 

Dynamite got hold of the property for some time in this century around 2011, doing very little with it of interest. They did give us a glorious P.A.M. cover as one of the myriad alternates they offer as a rule. 

No matter what they do with him though, they will never be able to repeatedly recreate the amazing essence and charm of those original P.A.M. comics. Note that Pat Boyette steps in to do a few of these as well. 

Special Note: Look for many more of these one-day celebrations as 2025 tumbles along. 

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Sarge Steel And The Sensational Sentinels!

Above is a delicious pin-up shot of Sarge Steel by co-creator Dick Giordano, from the 1974 CPL Gang's Charlton Portfolio which also sported a wraparound Don Newton cover. Just wanted to share this nugget before we dive into our main course today. 

Thunderbolt #57 is dated May 1967. The Sensational Sentinels appear again in a story titled "If This Be Triumph!". The story is plotted by D.C.Glanzman and the script and the art are by Sam Grainger. Lettering is by A.Machine. The story begins soon after the battle from the previous issue where we find Brute, Mentalia, and Helio in their apartment recovering. Brute apparently survived the fall from the roller coaster by landing in some water. Rick still has amnesia. The android Titan breaks into the apartment to continue the battle and he and Brute exchange blows, with Titan eventually flinging Brute toward a window. But Mentalia exerts her thoughts and is able to stop Brute in mid-air revealing for the first time not only an ability for telepathy but telekinesis as well. The Titan captures Mentalia and climbs down the building with her in tow. Brute follows using his great hand strength to grip the bricks on the side of the building. He and Titan again mix it up until Brute realizes that he was granted great strength over other men and not androids, so he changes tactics and uses a light pole to attack Titan to great effect. Then Brute leaps to attack Titan and Mentalia adds her telekinetic might to the thrust and they severely damage the android who ultimately collapses. 

Returning to their apartment the find Rick still confused but just they are dealing with what that means for the team Sarge Steel appears and announces that the Mind-Bender and Titan were creations of the C.I.A. and that Dr.Kolotov who gave them their powers was a Soviet spy. As the story ends, he is taking the team into custody in order for them to make statements.

 

Thunderbolt #58 is dated July 1967. The Sensational Sentinels return in a story titled "Into the Lair of the...Mind-Bender!". The story features artwork by Sam Grainger, but writing this time is by Sergius O'Shaughnessy a pseudonym for Denny O'Neil. The story picks up with Sarge Steel arresting the trio for spying, saying that Dr. Kolotov who gave them their powers was a Soviet agent. But Steel's aggressive nature and his attempt to shoot the trio in an alley convince them he is being controlled and Mentalia uses her ESP powers to overcome him. 

Then Brute and Mentalia are attacked by a hotdog vendor who they realize must be the Mind-Bender. They repel the attack, but he escapes. They then take both Sarge Steel and Rick Strong, also known as Helio to the hospital where the reports are good for both that they will recover. Then Crunch Wilson and Cindy Carson resume their roles as two-thirds of the Protesters, a singing group and try to perform. But they are attacked by a very hostile crowd clearly under the sway of the Mind-Bender. Helio returns just in time to save them using his flying belt and the trio escape. Later that evening Helio gets a call from Crunch and goes to the location only to find that he and Mentalia are taken prisoner by Brute who is under the power of the Mind-Bender. As the story closes, Helio and Mentalia are strapped to tables while Brute pushes a button which will kill them. 

This saga has a third chapter, but we never see Sarge Steel again. 

More Sarge Steel to come. 

This is a Revised Classic Charlton Post! 

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Thunderbolt - Special Case Number 11!

Thunderbolt #60 is dated November, 1967. The new team is in place. Pat Boyette produced the cover image and there's also a new logo for this final issue of the series. It is noted in the letters page that the cover features fewer captions and more action. "When Flies the Dragon" (Special Case Number 0011 for this report's purposes) is written by Sergius O'Shaugnessy (Denny O'Neil moonlighting at Charlton under a pseudonym) with artwork by Pat Boyette. Dick Giordano is listed as the editor. 

The story begins with a quote from the Chinese sage "I Ching" who is shown on the splash page alongside T-Bolt and his opponent. I get the sense that he is the narrator of sorts for the story. The tale begins in an airplane headed from New York for Australia where Peter Cannon is going for a writing job. He is seated to next to an obnoxious "lady's foundation garment" salesman when the plane is suddenly hijacked and they are flown to a remote location in the Australian bush country. There the passengers encounter The Dragon Master who informs them they are all hostages pending the payment of one million dollars and a hydrogen bomb. The unfortunate salesman gets lippy with the Dragon Master who uses his flame-jet gun to slay him. Peter and the rest are taken to a dungeon where Peter becomes Thunderbolt. He slips into the compound and defeats many of the Dragon Master's men before overhearing a radio message directed to New York, a Fu Street, and specifically a place called the "Rooms of Mist". T-Bolt overpowers the operator and sends an S.O.S. He is then confronted by the Dragon Master himself but escapes the fury of his Dragon Gun. An airplane hears the plea for help and wings its way to assist. 

The sound of the coming plane makes the Dragon Master flee in a helicopter as his henchmen scatter. Later in the safety of his hotel room Peter calls Tabu and tells him of his suspicions about Chinatown and the "Rooms of the Mist". Peter returns home to find Tabu missing and a note saying that he had investigated the clue. Peter surmises Tabu has been captured and becomes Thunderbolt again to save him going into Chinatown. He finds Fu Street and soon finds Tabu and his captors and quickly defeats them. Confronting Dragon Master again he and Tabu are captured and imprisoned in a steam room. T-Bolt uses his great will to tear loose steel struts and uses them to bash open the door. He and Tabu escape and T-Bolt races to the roof to confront the Dragon Master again who is once again escaping in a helicopter. T-Bolt breaks loose a television antennae and blocks the rotors, also causing a leak of fuel. Furious the Dragon Master tries to use his Dragon Gun but forgets the fuel and he and his pilot are caught in a fiery explosion. Later Peter and Tabu discuss the case and remember a cryptic comment made by the Dragon Master of one other he'd met who impressed him, and Peter wonders when if ever he might meet this other person similar to himself. "Thunderbolts" offers up six letters this time in a much smaller font that typically used. Two of the letters are filled with praise for the new Boyette artwork and look forward to the changes. Two letters express extreme disappointment that P.A.M. was leaving his creation. One writer gets confused and thinks that O'Shaugnessy had written the previous issue. And one writer wants the Sentinels replaced. Which the editors say they have all ready done.

"The Prankster" is written by Sergius O'Shaugnessy and drawn by Jim Aparo. The editor again is Dick Giordano. Set in the future city of Ultropolis, the Prankster is the enemy of an oppressive state and the the tale begins with him interfering with an execution using a hot air balloon to rescue the unfortunate prisoner. The balloon is high-tech though and moves very quickly. The Prankster leaves the prisoner in the balloon, instructing him how to land it and jumps out, to encounter and defeat two soldiers with laughing gas before making his escape. In the palace of the Tyrant Bane, a Captain Ludovic Wratt makes his report but instead of getting aid from the leader is forced to beg forgiveness from a robotic computer with which Bane has a fetish. Meanwhile the Prankster slips into the underground of the city to meet Hiram Grave a scientist who gives him the technology he uses to battle the government which has outlawed "love, laughter, art...everything that lends dignity to human beings". Grave gives the Prankster a new device, a magic flute but we do not see its secret. The scene shifts to the streets again where a girl has been caught by the police spraying graffiti and the Prankster disguised as an old man intervenes. The story ends as the police hold the girl and the Prankster at gunpoint. The next chapter is advertised as "The Vengeance of Wratt" but it never is fated to appear. 

Once again the great "Action-Heroes? We Got 'Em!!!" ad appears that closes the book on Thunderbolt at Charlton. This is the end of T-Bolt and the end of the Action-Heroes as well. Despite the teases in both the Thunderbolt and Prankster stories we never find out what will happen. The Prankster was a series with potential and Aparo's artwork was typically excellent. The Thunderbolt series under O'Neil was going to be more problematic. Peter changes under O'Neil, becoming more alienated from his role as Thunderbolt. Whereas Morisi has Cannon show reluctance to don the garb, there was never any doubt both Peter and T-Bolt were the same man. With O'Neil there seems to be the idea planted that Peter hates T-Bolt and wants to reject utterly what he represents. It's a more extreme treatment of the ideas that Morisi dealt with more quietly. But it is a treatment that will ultimately require a change of premise. 

But as it turns out it was a moot point. Thunderbolt was a distinctive series, guided by its creator Morisi and assisted mostly by Boyette, the series offered a hero filled mostly with calm, who spoke quietly but always came through. That's a neat counterpoint to the bombast that dominated Marvel at the time. Of all the Action-Heroes T-Bolt has been spared the changes at DC, because of the undeniable fact that Morisi created and maintained some degree of control of the character. Thunderbolt is still what Morisi wanted him to be for the most part, and that's no small accomplishment in the world of comics. 

No more Thunderbolt to come. 

NOTE: This is a Dojo Revised Classic Post. 

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