Dream Teams of the Groovy Age: Chris Claremont, John Byrne, Terry Austin, and Tom Orzechowski

Many are the fab and fantastic writers, artists, inkers, letterers, colorists, and editors who graced our beloved comicbook pages during the Groovy Age. Singly, each talented titan deserves more accolades than Ol' Groove, who is, after all, only a mere mortal, can bestow. Sometimes, though, two or more of those incredible individuals team up, and while their individual efforts are the stuff of legend, their combined energies create a kind of pure comicbook magic that shakes the foundation of the soul. (How's that for heavy hyperbole, Groove-ophiles?)

To put it mildly, sometimes some comics creators team up and make the best comics ever! Dream Teams of the Groovy Age is dedicated to bringing you, the constant reader (hey, I'm constantly writing, so you'd better be constantly reading!), the best of the best. From the most heralded to the most obscure, we're looking for that comicbook alchemy that makes the jaw drop and the heart pound.

First up, we have a team that's doggoned obvious, but it would almost be a sin to start with anyone else. Naturally, I'm yappin' about the team of Chris Claremont, John Byrne, Terry Austin, and Tom Orzechowski. Best known for their long, legendary run on the X-Men, this dream team also teamed up a few times outside that marvelous mutant mag, most notably on Marvel Preview #11 (Star-Lord) and Marvel Team-up #79 (Spider-Man and Red Sonja). Wanna see? Then, let's dig in, baby!

The Claremont/Byrne/Austin/Orz (I ain't gonna spell his name every time I mention it!) Dream Team first collaborated on Ol' Groove's all-time favorite sci-fi comic, Marvel Preview #11 (1977) featuring Star-Lord. They took a character created by the very different team of Steve Englehart and Steve Gan, spruced him up, and created a sensation. Englehart's version of Peter Jason Quill (aka Star-Lord) was an unlikable psycho. Our boys gave Quill a very unique side-kick, the living starship called "Ship", ironically, to emotionally ground him. They set the story a few years after the original so our hero had time to grow, mature, and, thankfully, mellow a bit. These ingredients, combined with a star-spanning tale of vengeance, love, and family, became a hit, making Star-Lord a cult classic. Here are a couple pages of original art I found lying around cyberspace:


Outta sight, huh?

Somebody at Marvel was a freakin' genius, 'cause when All New, All Different X-Men co-creator Dave Cockrum decided to try his hand at something non-mutant, they nabbed Byrne, Austin, and Orz to join Claremont in the mutant mayhem he'd been writing since ish #94. So for most of issues 108-143 our boys delivered what, to this day, is considered by many to be the greatest comicbook series ever. What made the magic here? Claremont and Byrne each had a vision, and those visions were sometimes very different. Somehow, they were able to compromise where it counted to create a unified voice for our Merry Mutants. Byrne, Austin, and Orz put pencil, pen, and brush to those pages with all the skill, energy, creativity, and heart they had. And they had tons of it, cause, dude, they rocked!


See, Ol' Groove won't jive ya, man!

Claremont and Byrne also teamed up fairly regularly on Marvel Team-Up before and during their X-Men run (issues 59-70, 75, 79, 100). Austin and Orz joined them on issue #79 to help Spidey meet Red Sonja. While visiting a museum with Peter Parker, Mary Jane touched Red Sonja's sword, which caused her to be possessed by/transformed into the real She-Devil with a Sword to battle the villainous Kulan Gath. This story became such a cult favorite it was given a sequel in the recent Spider-Man/Red Sonja inter-company crossover mini-series between Marvel and Dynamite. Here's just a taste of that fantasy masterpiece:

See what I mean, Groovesters? Can I get a big 10-4 for the sheer coolness of Claremont, Byrne, Austin, and Orz? I knew you'd dig 'em!

Now, have any of you got a Dream Team you'd like Ol' Groove to cover here on the Diversions blog? I have several more in mind, but I wanna hear from you! Who do you wanna see and why? Go bananas! Ol' Groove is waiting to hear from ya!

Pax!

Sunday Funnies: Jughead's Jokes #12

Unless you're from a galaxy far, far away, you know who Archie Andrews' best buddy is...the food lovin', girl hatin' Jughead Jones!

What always drew Li'l Groove to the Archie Jokebook series (there were quite a few of them) was the fact that they were fast, fun reads. No stories, just full page and half page gags targeted to tickle ya. From 1969, here are a few pages from Jughead's Jokes #12.

(Click 'em, Moose!)

Fantastic 50th Post!

What's happening, Groovesters! Welcome to a very special edition of Diversions of the Groovy Kind! Today, it's all about the 50s!

No, not those fifties, Arthur! I'm talking about fiftieth issues. Lasting fifty issues (or more) was a major accomplishment during the Groovy Age of Comics. Most comics that premiered during that time lasted less than dozen issues, while a lucky few lasted maybe twice that. So, to celebrate our fiftieth post, Ol' Groove proudly presents the cavortin' covers to fifty comics that actually made it to that fiftieth milestone issue during the Age we call Groovy. Enjoy!

Famous First Fridays: Adam West/Batman

I know it's cool these days to make fun of the ABC-TV version of Batman that ran from 1966-1968. It's even considered especially kewl to be ashamed of the show. I have a news flash for ya--without that show, we might've never gotten the great Denny O'Neil/Neal Adams, Bob Haney/Jim Aparo, Steve Englehart/Marshall Rogers, or even Doug Moench/Kelly Jones takes on the Caped Crusader. Without the Adam West Batman, I would bet money there would never have been a Michael Keaton or Christian Bale version. And there's one thing I can tell you with complete and utter assurance: without Adam West's Batman there would never have been a Groovy Agent. (Y'see, that's why I didn't mention Val Kilmer or George Clooney!)

Y'see, Groovesters, Batman and Robin were pretty much headed down the tubes by the early 1960s. His comic was running on fumes. Nobody was diggin' him. Editor extraordinaire Julius Schwartz was hired to revamp the Dynamic Duo, as he had done so successfully with the Flash, Green Lantern, and the Justice League. TV producer William Dozier, legend tells us, got on a plane with a Schwartz-edited ish of Batman (#171), decided those comics would make a whale of a great TV comedy, and set out to bring 'em to life. The rest is history. Or hysteria, 'cause the show led to a phenomenon called Batmania!

The Classic Batman Theme/Intro

Li'l Groove was naught but three years old when the ABC-TV version of Batman first aired. Believe it or not, I can still remember seeing the promos for that show. I can remember going across the street to my neighbor's house to watch the it--'cause the neighbors had a color TV, baby! Yeah, Batman made that much of an impact on me. Because of the Batman TV show, especially because of the wonderful acting by Adam West, who made me believe in Batman and what he (in those days) stood for, I was lured into the life of a comicbook fanatic. It started small. Maybe a Batman coloring book or puzzle (or pennant, or Halloween costume, or Batmobile toy--no, not a tiny little car, but a plastic dashboard that made groovy sounds!--Li'l Groove had 'em all!). Then one comic. Then another. Then some with other colorful, crazy characters like the F.F., Spidey, the Mighty Crusaders, the Flash, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, or Aquaman. I don't remember much after that. It's all a blur. Next thing I knew I had a crate full of comics. Now I have shelves piled to the ceiling.



I don't think I was the only one affected that way. My whole neighborhood was crawling with comics fiends. We'd go out on my back patio and spend hours trading comics. There wasn't a kid in my school who didn't know what was going on when I yelled, "To the Batmobile!" I often wondered what teachers thought when they saw a dozen or so second grade boys run by singing, "Nananananananana..." You couldn't go to a store without seeing Batman toys or bubble gum cards lining the shelves. Batman, thanks to that campy, wild, hilarious TV show, became a huge part of our culture.

The 1965 Batman Network Presentation

Today is Adam West's 80th Birthday, and this is Ol' Groove's tribute to him. He is my Famous First ever super-hero. Oh, him and a fella named Batman, natch.

Adam West and Burt Ward's Screen Tests

Not Necessarily the Groovy Age: Big Bang Comics

One of the cool things that has come out of comics over the past decade-and-a-half are the various homages to "the good old days." Many tributes to the Golden and Silver ages can be easily found (f'rinstance Alan Moore paid tribute to the Silver Age with the 1963 series, Dynamite Comics is currently revisiting the Golden Age with Project Superpowers, etc.), and there have been some great homages to the Groovy Age, as well. From time to time, I'll be presenting the best of these in yet another semi-series, Not Necessarily the Groovy Age. First up: Gary Carlson's Big Bang Comics.

Big Bang Comics first took comicdom by storm in the early 1990s when it was published as a mini-series by Caliber Comics. It quickly found a home as a series under the Image umbrella where it had a good, healthy run (1996-2001, plus a variety of specials through 2005). Most of the time, Big Bang focused on the Golden and Silver Ages, creating new characters that were tributes and pastiches to the greatest of the great. They found writers and artists who could magnificently mimic whatever character, era, or artist they wished to revisit, while at the same time turning out comics that were just plain old fun.

Naturally, Ol' Groove's favorite times were when the Big Bang boys took on the Groovy Age. Take issue #7, which perfectly captured the feel and flavor of the mid-70s Marvel Comics by placing Mighty Man in a very Jim Starlin-esque battle against his evil doppelganger. Writer Terrance Griep, Jr. along with artists Darren Goodhart and Mike Matthew managed to cram all kinds of cool scenes, homages, and references to Jim Starlin's Captain Marvel and Warlock that resulted in a really far-out "mash up". Then there's issue #11's The Absolute, which was a dead-on take on the Archie Goodwin/Walt Simonson Manhunter courtesy writer Daniel Wilson and artist Darren Goodhart. Another goodie was writer/Artist Chris Khalfa's tribute to the Brave and the Bold team of Bob Haney and Jim Aparo that starred Knight Watchman and the Blitz (ish #20). I could go on and on, but I think you dig where I'm comin' from!

The covers were where the Big Bang guys really shone. They wouldn't just homage art styles, but even the logos and blurbs were perfect adaptations of those from the Groovy Age. Sometimes, as with the covers of issue #'s 14 and 18, they'd even manage to get actual Groovy Age artists (Rich Buckler and the late, great Dave Cockrum, respectively) to lend their skills to the Big Bang gang of characters. It made for some truly fun comics, baby!



Big Bang is in semi-retirement at this moment, but you can still order most of their supremely awesome comics from the Big Bang website. If you've never treated yourself to a Big Bang comic, you've definitely missed out on a BLAST! (Please don't send mean letters--I couldn't resist!)

The Grooviest Covers of All Time #7

What it is!

Someone said, "Hey, Groove! You posted all those great Mike Kaluta covers yesterday, but ya didn't post a single one featuring the Shadow!"

Glad someone's paying attention!

'Twas all part of the plan, Groove-ophiles. Presenting my TWO favorite Shadow covers!

The Shadow #4 (January, 1974)

The Shadow #10 (January, 1975)

Hope you dig 'em as much as I dig 'em! And remember: The weed of crime bears bitter fruit!

Still Going: Mike Kaluta

He was a sound effect (Green Lantern/Green Arrow #84)! He was the original Swamp Thing villain (House of Secrets #92)! He was a founding member of the Studio! Who is Michael Wm. Kaluta? Here's what he has to say about himself; Ol' Groove says he is one of the most incredible illustrators to ever grace the pages of a comicbook!

Kaluta got his start in the late 60s, doing strips for fanzines, Charlton Comics, and even undergrounds. Around 1970, he got his big break at DC Comics, doing covers and strips for their mystery/horror line. In no time, he was the regular artist for Edgar Rice Burroughs' Carson of Venus, the back-up strip in DC's Korak, Son of Tarzan. He had a wonderful (though brief) stint in the back of the Phantom Stranger comic on the Spawn of Frankenstein. And of course he produced tons and tons of covers for DC, everything from superheroes to mystery/horror to sci-fi to war. Then came his most famous work: adapting pulp hero the Shadow along with writer Denny O'Neil (issues 1-4, 6). Only five issues, but they were the stuff of legend. Detailed rendering, perfect mood and staging, topped by such attention to authentic detail of the 1930s that it looked like it had actually been illustrated in the 1930s! Such attention to detail made it impossible for an artist of Kaluta's caliber to meet deadlines, so the rest of the issues, while beautifully illustrated by Frank Robbins and E.R. Cruz, just don't compare.While doing posters and art prints for the Studio, Kaluta filled the rest of the Groovy Age with some of the coolest covers that ever fried your brain. Superhero covers? Kaluta could deliver:

(Click 'em, Clyde!)



Horror/mystery covers? But, naturally!



Sci-fi? Dig it!



Fantasy covers? Like he was born to it!



Comics and illustration alone couldn't contain all that talent. In the early 80s, Kaluta co-created the stage play Starstruck with playwright Elaine Lee. In the mid-80s, he collaborated with Alan Parsons Project on the Don't Answer Me video.

Still in all, Kaluta has kept his hand in the comics world, working on a variety of projects. Things like strips in Heavy Metal magazine, the graphic novel/comicbook adaptation of Starstruck, working with his pal, the late Dave Stevens on the Rocketeer Adventure Magazine, and of course, lots more far-out covers like these:



Sing it loud, sing it proud: "Kaluta, Kaluta, Ka-luuuu-taaaaaaaaa!"