Still Truckin'/Sad Sack in "The Grudge"

 Greetings, Groove-ophiles! Ol' Groove is just checking in to reassure everyone that he (and DotGK) are alive and well--just buuuuuussssaaayy!

Writing/lettering/promoting your own comics it pretty time-consuming, but I love it! It's a great escape from work, Covid, and all the craziness that goes along with it. I just sent Diversions #4 to the printers, so it should be available via IndyPlanet in print and digital a few weeks from now. I also put it on DriveThruComics for all the .pdf fans out there. This issue is extra special because it features the last collaboration with my pal, the late Donnie Page. He created U.S. Flag and Liberty Lad (his version obviously, of Captain America and Bucky), long ago. A few years back we co-plotted the story, then in 2019, while battling cancer, Donnie drew this amazing, Groovy Age-style, wall-to-wall action mini-thriller in his (as he called it) "Sal Buscema-clone" style. This summer, inker/finisher John Gentil took on the task of getting the story ready for print by digitally enhancing and inking PHOTOS of the pages Donnie had taken with his phone--because he never got the chance to scan them. Herculean efforts like those of Donnie and John NEED to be published, so I'm thrilled to get this story into print. I'm especially thrilled that my friends Steven Butler and Mort Todd have allowed me to use their art (which they created to cheer Donnie up) as the cover. 

Art by Steven Butler/Colors by Mort Todd

There's also a a magnificently illustrated, by JW Erwin, Night Spider story in the issue...

...and Joe Koziarski rocked the modern/retro feel of super-science-hero Max Miracle, as well.

We also had a bit of a lark creating these faux snack cake ads in the style of the Groovy Age Hostess snack cake ads that ran in so many of our favorite comics...

Art by JW Erwin

Art by Joe Koziarski

The Guns & Rosa faux ad is in the OTHER book we sent to print (and DriveThru if you like your comics on the digital side), Guns & Rosa Special Edition #1. Joe Koziarski did the fantabulous cover, ad, and art for all the Rosa material (which was originally published in the first two issues of Diversions, but collected here in one mag for folks who like their anthologies to feature only one character). 

Ol' Groove has also been working on more characters/stories for  upcoming issues of Diversions, AND writing a prose novelette for an upcoming project that I can't speak of now, but will blow your socks off in the near future!

So, in short, Ol' Groove hasn't been a Sad Sack this year! And speaking of Sad Sack...Here's my favorite Sad Sack story from Sad Sack #200 (April 1968), with art (according to GCD) by Fred Rhoads--"The Grudge!"

George Baker's cover for Sad Sack #200

Oh, it's been a while since Ol' Groove has given a shout-out to some of his favorite blogs! Here are a few new-er ones that shine like Groovy Age stars (and you can always find them in the "Mind Blowing Blogs" list in the sidebar)!

Groove-ophile Michael Mead's Occasional Murmerings is one of Ol' Groove's favorite reads. He's currently discussing Jack Kirby's Fourth World mags as they each reach their 50th anniversary. Michael has an awesome spin on discussing these mags by showing how The King had his finger on the pulse of the times and how the real world helped him create the Fourth World. If you haven't been reading Michael's blog, you really need to check it out!

Attack of the 50 Year Old Comic Books by Alan Stewart is another must-read for all fans of the Groovy Age! Alan's delving into 1971, the year that Kid Groove turned into a full-fledged comicbook fiend, baby, and Alan is so adept at, not only recalling how he felt/feels about the comics, but the stories behind the creation of those comics that you just can't stop reading!

And Benton Grey's Into the Greylands is also covering good ol' 1971, but Benton's reviewing the groovy mags in his own inimitable way that add new insights that make you really think about the comics he's reviewing. Ol' Groove digs the way he looks at the mags with more of a modern eye, rather than just (yeah, like Ol' Groove) so much nostalgia. 

One last thing, Ol' Groove just has to thank Joeseph Simon and the gang at First Comics News for interviewing yers trooly about my fantasy creations, Kragor and Ash-Aman. As much as I dig rapping about the Groovy Age of comics, it's pretty cool to get to rap about my own stuff!

Cover art by Russ Martin

Stay safe and dry, Groove-ophiles, and I'll see ya next time! Pax! 

Groovy Guest Post! Steven Butler: Fianna McCool And The Hound Of Ulster

Greetings, Groov-ophiles! Here's a very special guest-post from one of Ol' Groove's most very special friends, Steven Butler! One of the best, most professional, most talented comicbook creators to come down grab a pencil! Take it away, buddy!

Hello, everyone!  No, this isn't the Groovy Agent, but a friend and colleague of his who has had the honor of being asked to make a guest post and share a few thoughts about the kind of comics I love, and the comics I'm currently making.  Thanks for this opportunity, Groove!

I'm Steven Butler, a 31 year veteran of the comic book industry. I've worked for many mainstream comic companies in my time, most notably Marvel and Archie Comics, where I had lengthy runs on characters like Silver Sable, Spider-Man, and Sonic The Hedgehog.  I also did work for comic Companies like Dark Horse, DC Comics, Disney Adventures Magazine, and Valiant Comics.

I've had the good fortune to work in a business that I always dreamed about when I was a kid in the Groovy Age, before comic book shops were even a thing(at least in my area)- where the local pharmacy or grocery store carried these four-color wonders called comic books that hooked me at such a young age.  I'm still not exactly sure what it was about them that so attracted me initially- the bold artwork done by legends in the industry- the action-packed storytelling of writer and artist who kept me entertained for the entire story and left me wanting more- the primary colors that beautifully complimented the stories being told- the larger-than-life characters themselves who made you cheer for them, or, in the case of the bad guys, made you love to hate them.  All in all, I think it was a combination of all of those pieces working together that truly captivated me and made me realize even back then in the early 1970's, that this was the thing I wanted to do with the rest of my life.  So, reading comics to me has always been about more than just enjoyment of an entertainment medium as a pastime- it's been a constant study of the form as a storytelling medium that I wanted to work in.

Having worked in the field for a long time now, I can say with all certainty that it's not a career for everybody- it's not even a career for everyone who think they want to do it.  But, if you're good enough, determined enough, not afraid of putting in long hours at the drawing board, and truly LOVE doing this stuff, it just might be for you.  There are no guarantees-  I've had ups and downs in my career just like everybody else.  I've even had to think outside the box and do other things like advertising art, t-shirt design, and caricatures to pay the bills.  I'm a married man with four grown kids, and it just hasn't always been easy- nothing that's truly worth it ever is.  But I'm still here, doing what I love to do for a living, and I said all that to lead into what's currently going on in the Butler Household.
A couple of years ago, when I was going about my "business as usual"- doing commissions for an increasing fan base, and drawing comics and covers for a variety of different indy companies, I was approached by my daughter Lily who asked me a simple question that went off like an atomic explosion in my brain.

Lily has always had the "art bug", ever since she was really little.  It may have something to do with the fact that I used to hold her as a baby while I was drawing the Sonic The Hedgehog comics for Archie.  I also used to read Casper and Hot Stuff Harvey Comics stories to her and her brother Aaron for bedtime stories(along with Marvel Monster comics by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby- they loved those).  So, her whole life has pretty much been one of being surrounded by comics and cartoons and the storytelling medium in general.

When she was in high school, I started noticing an exponential growth in her artistic abilities, and I started having her come to different conventions with me and to share my booth space with me.  Turns out she was a natural with it, and she started growing her own fan base, completely apart from my influence.  Lily's artistic influences are a bit different from mine-  She's influenced primarily by manga and anime, as well as the cartoons she grew up watching.

Now for the question she asked me back in 2018-  She just simply came up to me and said "Dad, can the two us do our own comic book together?"  I remember completely stopping whatever it was I was doing, because in my head, what she just asked me had a LOT more implications than she was even aware of.  To me, it was like a revelation, and I heard an inner voice in my head saying "Everything you've done has been leading to this.  You KNOW this is what you're supposed to do".  Was that God talking to me, or just my own mind trying to come to grips with the implications of what I had been asked to do?  Whatever it was, I recognized it as THE TRUTH.  After I gained my composure, I just looked at her and said "Okay, let's do it.", without even knowing what "it" was, yet.

Over the next couple of months, we brainstormed ideas that would eventually lead to our idea Fianna McCool And The Hound Of Ulster- a tale based on Irish Mythology, using anthropomorphic characters in a similar vein as my work on Sonic The Hedgehog, which was Lily's favorite growing up.  The Irish Mythology angle comes from our family heritage, as well as our shared love of fantasy literature and movies, and because Celtic lore is some of the most rich-yet-untapped fertile ground for comic storytelling.  We chose it to play up to both our strengths, really.

Fianna McCool is our female version of the Celtic hero Fionn Mac Cumhaill, who was one of the most important heroes of Celtic mythology, along with the mighty Cu Chullain, who appears in our story as Koo-Kullen, the "Hound of Ulster".  Together, these two heroic outlaws wage a desperate fight against the tyrannical Red Witch Queen Maeve of the kingdom of Connaught, and her insidious vermin army.  The story is full of action and intrigue, with some comedy thrown in for good measure.  It's most definitely a labor of love for both of us. It's also a comic that's geared for an all-ages audience.  Our goal is to entertain young and old alike with quality storytelling.  Simply put, we just tried to create a comic that we ourselves would like to read.

We started work on Fianna McCool And The Hound Of Ulster in 2019, and launched our kickstarter at the end of February this year.  The campaign proved successful, so we were off and running.  I handled the scripting and the penciling and inking in the traditional way I've always done it- pencils, pens, and paper, while Lily does the lettering and coloring and everything else on her iPad Pro tablet using the Clip Studio Paint software program.

We're really proud of the work we've done so far on the project, and are really excited about continuing on with it- we've got lots of stories to tell in Fianna's world, and I can't begin to express how great it is to be creating comics with my own daughter, who is doing a fantastic job on the lettering, the colors, and the layout.  In issue #2, she'll even be doing some penciling herself. I don't know if we're the first "Daddy-Daughter" team in comics- surely there have been others- but I know it has to be a pretty rare thing.  I just know that it's a mighty gratifying experience.  I know for a fact that this is what I'm supposed to be doing.

The first issue is now being sent out to all of the Kickstarter backers, with the majority of them having been mailed out as of this writing.  If you missed the Kickstarter, but are interested in acquiring a copy, you can either contact me through my Facebook page, Steven Butler Studios, or you could contact me via e-mail- stevenbutlerstudios@gmail.com.  We would love to hear from you!

That's about it for this rambling guest post.  Thanks again, Groovy Agent, for giving me this opportunity to share a bit about the goings-on in Butlerville.  Diversions of The Groovy Kind is a blog I've followed now for many years.  It's a great repository for classic comic book storytelling- a treasure trove full of the "good stuff"!

  
Now, it's time to get back to making comics!

See ya!

Steven Butler

Ol' Groove here, again! I have a copy of Fianna McCool and the Hound of Ulster and it's a five-star affair from cover to cover (as I'm sure the above samples bear witness)! It's gorgeous, it's fun, and if you have kids or (like me) grandkids, they'll love it, too! As Stan the Man used to say, Fianna is an instant classic!

They Don't Make 'Em Like That Any More--Or Do They? InDELLible Comics' Popular Comics

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! Hot on the heels of the successful re-birth of Charlton Comics (as Charlton Neo) comes the rebirth of Dell comics as InDELLible Comics! In fact the Charlton re-birth inspired the good folks at InDELLible to bring back one of the oldest and most venerable titles of all time: Popular Comics as All-New Popular Comics featuring public domain Dell characters, public domain Golden Age characters, brand new characters, and more! Not only that--aw, what do you wanna hear from Ol' Groove? Let's hear the straight skinny from InDELLible honchos Jim Ludwig, Dave Noe, and Daerick Gross Sr.! Take it away, InDELLible Ones!

Cover art by Steven and Lily  Butler

All-New Popular Comics #1 is now available on Amazon in physical and digital editions.  It’s a 64 page, 8X10, full color comic book anthology with card stock covers.  The comic captures the new adventures of the Dell Comics characters from the forties to the sixties.  The first issue has a wide variety from superheroes to humor to horror and science fiction and fantasy and western!  The latter is represented by the return of a special historical character not seen since the mid sixties, Lobo, the first African-American character to have his own comic book.

Dell Comics was mainly known for its licensed work, and at one time vastly outsold Marvel and DC.  Its lesser known characters, however mostly languished quickly and were soon “orphaned” after Dell folded in the seventies.  Taking the spark of what made the characters interesting and keeping the fun adventurous and mostly all-ages aspect of Dell, InDELLible Comics has breathed new life into the classic motifs, eventually even adding new characters and other public domain characters as the stories permit.

The endeavor started out almost a year ago with Jim Ludwig over on his Dell Comics Heroes facebook page.  He had been talking about starting some kind of book, but wanted to know if anyone would be able to help him.  David Noe volunteered to help, and they co-founded what soon became known as InDELLible Comics.  Just a few weeks later, Dærick Gröss Sr. signed on as the necessary visual editor, and they were off and running.  Within the first year, the business was started, the book was conceived AND finished!  Dozens of creators have signed on to show their talents and tell their stories.

All-New Popular Comics, or PopCom as it is nicknamed, is published in a POD format.  That means there is no stockpile of books somewhere.  The books are only printed as they are ordered.  All the contributors, including editors, are volunteering their time and talents.  The only monetization for them is to buy at wholesale and sell at retail.  This is a labor of love, with the creators pouring everything they have into the stories.

Although the next few issues are already full or scheduled, InDELLible will soon be looking for more scripts and artists, colorists and inkers and letterers.! For more information, search for InDELLible Comics on facebook, or email the editors at:

Jim Ludwig (EIC)- narfstar13@gmail.com
Daerick Gross Sr. (visual editor)- daerickgross@yahoo.com
David Noe- (script editor)- wnoe@aol.com

There ya have it, Groove-ophiles! If you miss the sheer variety of the Golden Age, the fun of the Silver Age, and the cool of the Bronze Age, PopCom is gonna hit you where you live! (Oh, and Ol' Groove even has a story in a near-future ish! Stay tuned!)