DAN GORDON, FRIEND TO ALIENATED YOUTH

I discovered Dan Gordon's work at age 13, when I started buying mysterious old comics. He was one of a rare kind: a "kiddie" cartoonist who readily addressed the fact that this is NOT an ideal world.

Compare this to the lies and the patness of the Harvey, Gold Key and Archie comics I grew up with, and you may realize the exhilarating contrast Gordon's work provided. Even his inking seemed tough and cynical. The way some artists feel about Crumb "liberating" their vision, I feel about Gordon.

Giving an indication are some panels from his SUPERKATT and COOKIE comics. When I bought these in the late 1970s, the general consensus was that anyone who went for any "funny" comics besides Barks, Kelly & George L. Carlson was plain stupid. Now books like GIGGLE and HA HA are being revaluated by a small group of fans, and the prices continue to go up. I fully believe it's because of the absence of all-out, no-bars humor in the present day...unless they are ancient reprints.

Scans of full stories are readily available online. Happy hunting!



And in Conclusion: a link to a Popeye cartoon, HAPPY BIRTHDAZE, a classic Dan Gordon character study: http://youtu.be/aMJrM80r50A

Nostalgically Yours, MK