The STEVE DITKO ARCHIVES:

The THING #13 - Dr. Strange had a Brother! (Or Did He?)

Everything I'm about to tell you is untrue, except this: This story was done by Steve Ditko two years before he ever worked at Marvel (as a freelancer for 16 stories), and five years before he worked there regular AND two years before he ever did a story with Stan Lee (it was a Western) and five years before he ever did a story with Stan Lee that was horror/scifi themed.

Just saying.

(The THING #13 - cover dated April 1954, on newsstands February 1st, 1954 with cover art by Steve Ditko)


Nine years before Dr. Stephen Strange would get into a car accident that would eventually lead him into becoming 'Dr. Strange, Master of the Mystic Arts', Steve Ditko did a story for Charlton about his brother Eric Strange (Eric Staton?), a reporter who... due to writer's block would get himself involved in some mystical adventures of his own...

He lived in Greenwich Village just down the street from where Dr. Strange would one day reside!
Look familiar?

And no, that's NOT a joint he's smoking. Tobacco relaxes people TOO, ya know?

(The THING #13 - cover dated April 1954, on newsstands February 1st, 1954 with art by Steve Ditko)


Turns out the Terrible Tinkerer hadn't yet met those Aliens he'd work with in Amazing Spider-man #2, so instead he was still focusing on his Used Books for sale... but those books were a special kind of evil! (One day Dr. Strange himself would come into possession of them).

But for NOW, Eric Strange would see the power behind them!

(The THING #13 - cover dated April 1954, on newsstands February 1st, 1954 with art by Steve Ditko)


Eric Strange would be pulled into the Unknown Dimensions and experience and see horrors he never thought possible! Unbelievable worlds that one day his brother would venture to...

(The THING #13 - cover dated April 1954, on newsstands February 1st, 1954 with art by Steve Ditko)


Despite being quiet and staying hidden he would eventually be discovered and Nightmare would send his minions after him!

(The THING #13 - cover dated April 1954, on newsstands February 1st, 1954 with art by Steve Ditko)


He would have to make a 'Deal with the Devil' and of course, it was a double cross, and his sweetheart, Marion Stacy (Yes, you always wondered whatever happened to Gwen Stacy's mom) paid the price for it...

(The THING #13 - cover dated April 1954, on newsstands February 1st, 1954 with art by Steve Ditko)

Then Spawn shows up, 36 years before Todd McFarlane... what? Ok, The GREEN GOBLIN then... hunh? You caught on? Darn it.

Ditko has two other stories in this issue, it's one of his best books of the pre-Marvel era for him! And yes, you can see some future influence in his Marvel work here!

(The THING #13 - cover dated April 1954, on newsstands February 1st, 1954 with art by Steve Ditko)

ARCHIE ANNUAL #24 - Length and Suggestiveness!

I bought this ok looking copy for $4

This 48 page Annual came out in 1972 and features a couple of 'Still going strong Harry Lucey' stories, though it sports a humorous Dan DeCarlo cover. (See what I did there?) Lucey was in the last couple of years of working for Archie Comics, retiring in 1976 with Archie Comics #254 (July 1976) after being diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease. Inker Chic Stone completed the art for the rest of the stories in the issue... 35 years Harry Lucey drew for Archie Comics...

(ARCHIE ANNUAL #24 cover-dated 1972, on newsstands May 30th, 1972, with cover art by Dan DeCarlo)


There was just something about the way Lucey drew his females. DeCarlo was great at making them look wholesome and yet sexy, but Lucey had a way of making them look 'sexual'.  The way they turn their body, the length of their skirt... he was a master at it...

(ARCHIE ANNUAL #24 cover-dated 1972, on newsstands May 30th, 1972, with art by Harry Lucey)

For Archie himself... not so sexy. Though no less suggestive. But funny. 

(ARCHIE ANNUAL #24 cover-dated 1972, on newsstands May 30th, 1972, with art by Harry Lucey)

Now talk about somebody who was at Archie Comics even longer... Bill Vigoda! His first Archie story was in Archie Comics #8 in 1944 (he started at MLJ in 1943) and he would work there until  January 1973's Reggie & Me #68. Vigoda drew for Archie Comics for 30 years...

Within two months, Stan Goldberg, who'd been freelancing some work with Archie Comics since 1969 (when his Marvel work suspiciously started looking more Archie like) started to transition his workload from Marvel to Archie. By the end of 1973, Goldberg was done at Marvel and full time at Archie Comics.

Bill Vigoda probably said more than "Oh! Whoopee Twang!"

(ARCHIE ANNUAL #24 cover-dated 1972, on newsstands May 30th, 1972, with art by Bill Vigoda)

I sometimes wonder if they had a library of these half page strips sitting around and then they'd occasionally plug them into an issue to take up some space. It's tough to tell who drew them at times because they always look hurried and a little less polished. But they're funny most of the time...

(ARCHIE ANNUAL #24 cover-dated 1972, on newsstands May 30th, 1972, with art by ?)

Not sure who drew this ad, but Betty and Veronica look like they both have some big ass FEET. I like Betty's pose and her hat though... The Summertime Giant Series was always something I looked forward to. Well... I looked forward to picking them up when I saw them anyway!

(ARCHIE ANNUAL #24 cover-dated 1972, on newsstands May 30th, 1972, with art by ?)

And here's Harry Lucey again. That's a random girl from the High School by the way, but I'm sure you know who's behind the water fountain there.

(ARCHIE ANNUAL #24 cover-dated 1972, on newsstands May 30th, 1972, with art by Harry Lucey)

The INCREDIBLE HULK #144 - Too many cooks!

I bought this beat up copy for $4

Herb Trimpe did the cover for this (I really like Herb's run of covers on this book) but this is actually Part 2 of a two part story that Dick Ayers and John Severin did the art on. John Severin is one of the few thin line inkers that I really like.

For some reason it took two people to write this, Roy 'Houseroy' Thomas and Mike Friedrich are credited, this just a couple of issues after Harlen Ellison did a guest-written issue. This is right as Houseroy was getting ready to transition into the Editor-In-Chief role, so I suspect he had his hands full at the time.

Also thought it was interesting how in the 'Incredible Herb Trimpe' Book released after the artists' death, Houseroy talked about how many times, he gave Herb just a small bit of information and he'd put the whole story together. Those artists' did a lot more work than they get credit for.

So this story took two writers and two artists and the rest of the team...

(The INCREDIBLE HULK #144 - cover dated October 1971, on newsstands July 13th, 1971 with cover art by Herb Trimpe and inks by John Severin)


The Incredible Hulk seems like the type of comic that works perfectly as a month to month, as opposed to a long form story, but even back then they had continued stories - this one starting in the issue before. In it, Bruce Banner is taken away by Dr. Doom to be brainwashed and work on a Gamma Bomb for him...

(The INCREDIBLE HULK #144 - cover dated October 1971, on newsstands July 13th, 1971 with art by Dick Ayers and John Severin)


But love gets in the way. Comics loved this type of thing back then... the all powerful bad guy who's all bent out of shape because of a woman. It doesn't really fit Dr. Doom, but these comic books were always pretty limited in their storytelling.

(The INCREDIBLE HULK #144 - cover dated October 1971, on newsstands July 13th, 1971 with art by Dick Ayers and John Severin)


It's funny how I have as much nostalgia for these ad pages as I do the comics they appear in! I always wanted to get this stuff, but for me, I guess sending $1 off in the mail was too much work at 12 years of age!

(The INCREDIBLE HULK #144 - cover dated October 1971, on newsstands July 13th, 1971)


I'm guessing the Comics Code Authority assumed Doom meant that in a figurative way...

(The INCREDIBLE HULK #144 - cover dated October 1971, on newsstands July 13th, 1971 with art by Dick Ayers and John Severin)

The Hulk ends up not too happy he's been a part of some brain wash scheme, and comes as close to hand-to-hand ending the life of Dr. Doom as I can ever remember. But he also has this pensive moment, which in hindsight looks especially weird... I thought Hulk turned back to Banner when he settled down???

(The INCREDIBLE HULK #144 - cover dated October 1971, on newsstands July 13th, 1971 with art by Dick Ayers and John Severin)

Here in the Hulk's mailbag, (Houseroy?) addresses the Comics Code Drug issues done in the Amazing Spider-man. They even make appearances in each others mail bags!

(The INCREDIBLE HULK #144 - cover dated October 1971, on newsstands July 13th, 1971)