{"id":19675,"date":"2019-02-13T09:00:44","date_gmt":"2019-02-13T09:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=19675"},"modified":"2019-02-12T17:36:04","modified_gmt":"2019-02-12T17:36:04","slug":"showcase-presents-young-love-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2019\/02\/13\/showcase-presents-young-love-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Showcase Presents Young Love"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"
\nBy Robert Kanigher<\/strong>, Julius Schwartz<\/strong>, John Romita<\/strong>, Bernard Sachs<\/strong>, John Rosenberger<\/strong>, Werner Roth<\/strong>, Bill Draut<\/strong>, Mike Sekowsky<\/strong>, Win Mortimer<\/strong>, John Giunta<\/strong>, Tony Abruzzo<\/strong>, Arthur Peddy<\/strong>, Dick Giordano<\/strong>, Jay Scott Pike<\/strong> Gene Colan<\/strong> & various (DC Comics)
\nISBN: 978-1-4012-3438-6<\/p>\n

As the escapist popularity of flamboyant superheroes waned after World War II, newer genres such as Romance and Horror came to the fore and older forms regained their audiences. Some, like Westerns and Funny Animal comics, had hardly changed at all but crime and detective tales were utterly radicalised by the temperament of the times.<\/p>\n

Stark, uncompromising, cynically ironic novels and socially aware, mature-themed movies that would become categorised as Film Noir offered post-war society a bleakly antiheroic worldview that often hit too close to home and set fearful, repressive, middleclass parent groups and political ideologues howling for blood.<\/p>\n

Naturally, these new sensibilities seeped into comics, transforming two-fisted gumshoe and Thud-&-Blunder cop strips of yore into darkly beguiling, even frightening tales of seductive dames, big pay-offs and glamorous thugs. Sensing imminent Armageddon, America’s moral junkyard dogs bayed even louder as they saw their precious children’s minds under seditious attack\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Concurrent to the demise of masked mystery-men, industry giants Joe Simon & Jack Kirby famously invented the love genre for comicbooks with mature, beguiling, explosively contemporary social dramas equally focussed on the changing cultural scene and adult themed relationships. They began with semi-comedic prototype My Date<\/strong> in early 1947 before plunging into the torrid real deal with Young Romance<\/strong> #1 in September of that year.<\/p>\n

Not since the invention of Superman<\/strong> had a single comicbook generated such a frantic rush of imitation and flagrant cashing-in. It was a monumental hit and the team quickly expanded: releasing spin-offs such as Young Love<\/strong> (February 1949), Young Brides<\/strong> and In Love<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Simon & Kirby presaged and ushered in the first American age of mature comics – not only with their creation of the Romance genre, but with challenging modern tales of real people in extraordinary situations – before seeing it all disappear again in less than eight years.<\/p>\n

Their small stable of magazines produced for the loose association of companies known as Prize\/Crestwood\/Pines blossomed and wilted as the industry contracted throughout the 1950s.<\/p>\n

All through that turbulent period, comicbooks suffered impossibly biased oversight and hostile scrutiny from hidebound and panicked old guard institutions such as church groups, media outlets and ambitious politicians. A number of tales and titles garnered especial notoriety from those social doom-smiths, and hopeful celebration and anticipation amongst tragic, forward-thinking if psychologically scarred comics-collecting victims was quashed when the industry introduced a ferocious Comics Code that castrated the creative form just when it most needed boldness and imagination.<\/p>\n

We lost and comics endured more than a decade and a half of savagely doctrinaire, self-imposed censorship.<\/p>\n

Those tales from a simpler time, exposing a society in meltdown and suffering cultural PTSD, are mild by modern standards of behaviour, but the quality of art and writing make those pivotal years a creative highpoint long overdue for a thorough reassessment.<\/p>\n

The first Young Love<\/strong> ran for 73 issues (1949-1956) before folding and re-launching in a far more anodyne, Comics-Code-approved form as All For Love<\/strong> in Spring 1957.<\/p>\n

Unable to find an iota of its previous and hoped-for audience it disappeared after 17 issues in March 1959 before resurrecting as Young Love<\/strong> again a year later with #18. It then ran steadily but unremarkably until June 1963 when the experiment and the company died with #38.<\/p>\n

Crestwood sold up its few remaining landmark, groundbreaking titles and properties – Young Romance<\/strong>, Young Love<\/strong> and Black Magic<\/strong> being the most notable – to National\/DC and faded from the business\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The new bosses released their first edition in the autumn of 1963 as part of their own small, shy and unassuming romance ring: carrying on with it and a coterie of similar titles targeting teenaged girls (for which, read aspirational and imaginative 8 to 12-year olds) over the next fifteen years.<\/p>\n

The savage decline in overall comicbook sales during the 1970s finally killed the genre off. Young Love<\/strong> was one of the last; dying with #126, cover-dated July 1977.<\/p>\n

This quirky mammoth monochrome compilation gathers the first 18 DC issues (#39-56 spanning September\/October 1963 through July\/August 1966) but, although beautiful to look upon, it is sadly plagued with twin tragedies.<\/p>\n

The first is that the stories quickly become fearfully formulaic – although flashes of narrative brilliance do crop up with comforting regularity – whilst the second is an appallingly inaccurate listing of creator credits.<\/p>\n

Many fans have commented and suggested corrections online, and I’m adding my own surmises and deductions about artists whenever I’m reasonably sure, but other than the unmistakable, declamatorily florid flavour of Robert Kanigher, none of us in fandom are that certain just who was responsible for the scripting of these amatory sagas. However, research continues and sites like the Grand Comicbook Database<\/strong> and Lambiek<\/strong> are continually fixing history for us\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Here, likely contenders include Barbara Friedlander, Dorothy Woolfolk, George Kashdan, Jack Miller, Phyllis Reed, E. Nelson Bridwell and Morris Waldinger but I’m afraid we may never really know.<\/p>\n

C’est l’amour\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

On these anthological pages, the heartbreak and tears begin with the introduction of a soap-opera serial undoubtedly inspired by the romantic antics of television physicians such as Dr. Kildare<\/strong> (1961-1966) and Ben Casey<\/strong> (1962-1966). Written in an uncomfortably macho \u00e2\u20ac\u0153me Doctor Tarzan, you Nurse Jane\u00e2\u20ac\u009d style by Kanigher and illustrated with staggering beauty by John Romita, ‘The Private Diary of Mary Robin R.N.’<\/em> follows the painful journey and regular heartache of a nurse dedicated to her patients whilst fighting her inbuilt need to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153settle down\u00e2\u20ac\u009d with the man of her dreams, whoever he is\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 It’s usually a big-headed, know-it-all medic who has no time to waste on \u00e2\u20ac\u0153settling down\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The serial opened with ‘No Cure for Love’<\/em>, a 2-part novelette in which a newly-qualified Registered Nurse starts her career at County General Hospital in the OR; instantly arousing the ire of surly surgeon Will Ames<\/em> whose apparent nastiness is only a mask for his moody man-concern over his poor benighted patients – but never their billables\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

However, even as he romances Mary and she dares to dream, the good doctor soon proves that medicine will always be his first and only Love\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

I’m not sure of the inker but the pencils on stand-alone back-up ‘You’ve Always Been Nice!’<\/em> look like Werner Roth in a novel yarn of modern Texans in love that pretty much sets the tone for the title: Modern Miss gets enamoured of the wrong guy or flashy newcomer until the quiet one who waited for her finally gets motivated\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

‘The Eve of His Wedding’<\/em> – by Bernard Sachs – goes with the other favourite option: a smug, flashy girl who loses out to the quiet heroine waiting patiently for true love to lead her man back to her\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

In #40 Kanigher & Romita ask ‘Which Way, My Heart?<\/em>‘ of Mary Robin and she answers by letting Dr. Ames walk all over her before transferring to Pediatrics. She still found time to fall in love with a thankfully adult patient – but only until he got better\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Filling out the issue are ‘Someone to Remember’<\/em> (illustrated by Bill Draut) which sees sensible Judy<\/em> utterly transform herself into a sophisticated floozy for a boy who actually prefers the old her, and ‘The Power of Love’<\/em> (incorrectly attributed to Don Heck but perhaps Morris Waldinger or John Rosenberger heavily inked by Sachs?) in which Linda<\/em> competes with her own sister over new boy Bill<\/em>\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Although retaining the cover spot, the medical drama was relegated to the end of the comic from #41 on and complete stories led, starting on ‘End With A Kiss’<\/em> by Mike Sekowsky & Sachs, wherein calculating Anna<\/em> almost marries wrong guy Steve<\/em> until good old Neil<\/em> puts his foot down, whilst for a girl who dates two men at the same time, ‘Heartbreak Came Twice!’<\/em>: a tale that was almost a tragedy\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Mary Robin then cries – she cried a lot – ‘No Tomorrow for My Heart!’<\/em> as Will Ames continues to call when he feels like it and she somehow finds herself competing with best friend Tess<\/em> for both him and a hunky patient in their care. She even briefly quits her job for this man of her dreams\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The superb John Rosenberger inking himself – mistakenly credited throughout as Jay Scott Pike – opens #42 with ‘Boys are Fools!’<\/em> wherein young Phyllis<\/em> is temporarily eclipsed by her cynical, worldly older sister Jayne<\/em>\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 until a decent man shows them the error of their ways. Vile Marty<\/em> then uses unwitting Linda<\/em> as a pawn in a battle of romantic rivals for ‘A Deal with Love!’<\/em> (Rosenberger or maybe Win Mortimer & Sachs?). I don’t have any corroborating proof, but a custom of the era was for artists to trade pages or anonymously collaborate on some stories; making visual identification a real expert’s game\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

With a ‘Fearful Heart!’<\/em>, Mary Robin closes up the issue by accidentally stealing the love of a blinded patient nursed by her plain associate. When the hunk’s sight returned, he just naturally assumes the pretty one was his devoted carer\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Young Love<\/strong> #43 opened with the excellent ‘Remember Yesterday’<\/em> (looking like Gil Kane layouts over Sachs) in which Gloria<\/em> relives her jilting by fianc\u00c3\u00a9 Grant<\/em> before embarking on a journey of self-discovery and finding her way back to love\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 Then the Sekowsky\/Sachs influenced ‘A Day Like Any Other’<\/em> and ‘Before it’s Too Late’<\/em> disclose the difficulties of being a working woman and the temptations of being left at home all alone\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

After that, Kanigher & Romita end the affairs by showing the childhood days of Mary Robin and just why she turned to nursing when her childhood sweetheart becomes her latest patient in ‘Shadow of Love!’<\/em><\/p>\n

Issue #44 declares ‘It’s You I Love!’<\/em> (Kane or Frank Giacoia with Sachs?) as wilful Chris<\/em> foolishly sets her cap for the college’s biggest hunk, whilst in ‘Unattainable’<\/em> Lorna<\/em> learns that she just isn’t that special to playboy Gary<\/em> before Mary Robin endures ‘Double Heartbreak!’<\/em> when her own sister Naomi<\/em> sweeps in and swoops off with on-again, off-again Dr. Ames\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Sekowsky & Sachs opened #45 with ‘As Long as a Lifetime!’<\/em> wherein poor April finds herself torn between and tearing apart best friends Tommy <\/em>and Jamie<\/em>, whilst ‘Laugh Today, Weep Tomorrow!’<\/em> (which looks like Jay Scott Pike & Jack Abel) has tragic Janet see her best friend Margot<\/em>‘s seductive allure steal away another man she might have loved\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

‘One Kiss for Always’<\/em> then shows Mary Robin as the patient after a bus crash costs her the use of her legs.<\/p>\n

During her battle back to health, and loss of the only man she might have been happy with, the melodrama finally achieves the heights it always aspired to in a tale of genuine depth and passion.<\/p>\n

The captivating Rosenberger leads in #46 as Maria<\/em> and Mark<\/em> conspire together to win back their respective intendeds and discover exactly ‘Where Love Belongs’<\/em>, after which Mortimer reveals ‘It’s All Over Now’<\/em> for Merrill<\/em> who only gets Cliff<\/em> because Addie<\/em> went away to finishing school.<\/p>\n

But then she came back\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

This surprisingly mature and sophisticated fable is followed by ‘Veil of Silence!’<\/em> in which Nurse Robin takes her duties to extraordinary lengths: allowing a patient to take her latest boyfriend in order to aid her full recovery\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

In #47 ‘Merry Christmas’<\/em> (Rosenberger) shows astonishing seasonal spirit as Thea<\/em> cautiously welcomes back sister Laurie<\/em> – and gives her a second chance to steal her husband – after which secretary Vicky <\/em>eavesdrops on her boss and boyfriend: almost finishing her marriage before it begins in ‘Every Beat of his Heart!’<\/em>(Mortimer).<\/p>\n

Mary Robin’s ‘Cry for Love’<\/em> starts in another pointless fling with the gadabout Ames and ends with her almost stealing another nurse’s man in a disappointingly shallow but action-packed effort, after which – in #48 – ‘Call it a Day’<\/em> (Mortimer) finds an entire clan of women united to secure a man for little Alice<\/em>, before Rosenberger limns ‘Trust Him!’<\/em> wherein bitter sister Marta<\/em>‘s harsh advice to love-sick sibling Jill<\/em> is happily ignored. Kanigher & Romita then explore Mary Robin’s ‘Two-Sided Heart!’<\/em> after Ames again refuses to consider moving beyond their casually intimate relationship.<\/p>\n

Of course, that shouldn’t excuse what she then does with the gorgeous amnesia patient who has a grieving girlfriend\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Young Love<\/strong> #49 opened with Rosenberger’s ‘Give Me Something to Remember You By!’ <\/em>with Marge<\/em> praying that her latest summer romance turns into a something more. Waiting is a torment but ‘Your Man is Mine!’<\/em> (Roth) shows what’s worse when sisters clash and Clea<\/em> again tries taking what Pat<\/em> has – a fianc\u00c3\u00a9\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

‘Someone\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 Hear my Heart!’<\/em> then unselfconsciously dips into the world of TV as Mary Robin dumps Dr. Ames for an actor and a new career on a medical show. It doesn’t end well and she’s soon back where she belongs with the man who can’t or won’t appreciate her\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Roth opened #50 with ‘Second Hand Love’<\/em> as Debbie<\/em> dreads that the return of vivacious Vicky<\/em> will lead to her taking back the man she left behind, whilst ‘Come into My Arms!’<\/em> (Ogden Whitney or Ric Estrada perhaps?) sees Mary Grant<\/em> visit Paris in search of one man only to fall for another\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Mary Robin then finds herself pulled in many directions as she falls for another doctor and one more hunky patient before yet again rededicating herself to professional care over ‘The Love I Never Held!’<\/em><\/p>\n

She jumps back to the front in #51 and discovers ‘All Men are Children!’<\/em> (still Kanigher & Romita) when an unruly shut-in vindictively uses her to make another nurse jealous, after which Rosenberger delivers a stunning turn with ‘Afraid of Love!’<\/em> Here, after years of obsessive yearning, Lois<\/em> finally goes for it with the man of her dreams.<\/p>\n

Romita then took a turn at an anthology solo story with ‘No Easy Lessons in Love’<\/em> as Gwen <\/em>and Peter<\/em> travel the world and make many mistakes before finally finding each other again.<\/p>\n

The nurse finally got her man – and her marching orders – in #52’s ‘Don’t Let it Stop!’<\/em>, but dashing intern Dan Swift<\/em> only makes his move on Mary after being hypnotised! Hopefully, she lived happily ever after because, despite being advertised for the next issue, she didn’t appear again\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The abrupt departure was followed by vintage reprint ‘Wonder Women of History: Mary Kingsbury Simkhovitch’<\/em> (by Julius Schwartz & John Giunta from Wonder Woman<\/strong> #55, September\/October 1952), detailing the life of a crusading social campaigner before Roth – possibly inked by Sheldon Moldoff – details how a flighty girl stops chasing husky lifeguards and finds a faithful adoring ‘Young Man for Me!’<\/em><\/p>\n

‘The Day I Looked Like This!’<\/em> (by Dick Giordano, not Gene Colan) celebrates the day tomboy Judi<\/em> finally starts gussying up like a proper girl and unhappily discovers she is the spitting image of a hot starlet\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Issue #53 opens with ‘A Heart Full of Pride!’<\/em> (Sachs) as na\u00c3\u00afve Mib<\/em> proves to herself that, just like in school, determination and perseverance pay off in romance, before Mortimer details how standoffish Cynthia<\/em> learns how she needs to play the field to win her man in ‘I Wanted My Share of Love’<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Romita describes the designs of Kathy<\/em> who discovers the pitfalls of her frivolous lifestyle in ‘Everybody Likes Me\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 but Nobody Loves Me!’ <\/em>before Draut illustrates the lead feature in #54 as ‘False Love!’<\/em> exposes a case of painfully mistaken intentions when a gang of kids all go out with the wrong partners\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 until bold Nan<\/em> finally speaks her mind.<\/p>\n

‘Love Against Time’<\/em> by Tony Abruzzo & Sachs shows schoolteacher Lisa<\/em> that patience isn’t everything, after which ‘Too Much in Love!’<\/em>(Romita) hints at a truly abusive relationship until Mandy<\/em>‘s rival tells her just why beloved Van<\/em> acts that way\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

‘An Empty Heart!’<\/em> (Arthur Peddy & Sachs or possibly Mortimer again) opens #55, revealing how insecure Mindy<\/em> needs to date other boys just to be sure she can wait for beloved Sam<\/em> to come back from the army, whilst Sachs’ ‘Heart-Shy’ Della<\/em> takes took her own sweet time realising self-effacing Lon<\/em> is the boy for her, after which the original and genuine Jay Scott Pike limns the tale of Janie<\/em> who at last defies her snobbish, controlling mother and picks ‘Someone of My Own to Love’<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The romance dance concludes here with #56 and ‘A Visit to a Lost Love’<\/em> (actually Gene Colan): a bittersweet winter’s tale of paradise lost and regained, after which perpetually fighting Richy<\/em> and Cindy<\/em> realise ‘Believe it or Not\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 It’s Love’<\/em> (Abruzzo & Sachs), and ‘I’ll Make Him Love Me!’<\/em> (Sachs) show how scary Liz<\/em> stalks Perry<\/em> until she falls for her destined soul-mate Bud<\/em>\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

As I’ve described, the listed credits are full of errors and whilst I’ve corrected those I know to be wrong I’ve also made a few guesses which might be just as wild and egregious (I’m still not unconvinced that many tales were simply rendered by a committee of artists working in desperate jam-sessions), so I can only apologise to all those it concerns, as well as fans who thrive on these details for the less-than-satisfactory job of celebrating the dedicated creators who worked on these all-but-forgotten items.<\/p>\n

As for the tales themselves: they’re dated, outlandish and frequently borderline offensive in their treatment of women.<\/p>\n

So were the times in which they were created, but that’s not an excuse.<\/p>\n

However, there are many moments of true narrative brilliance to equal the astonishing quality of the artwork on show here, and by the end of this titanic torrid tome the tone of the turbulent times was definitely beginning to change as the Swinging part of the Sixties began and hippies, free love, flower power and female emancipation began scaring the pants off the old guard and reactionary traditionalists\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Not for wimps or sissies but certainly an unmissable temptation for all lovers of great comic art\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6
\n\u00c2\u00a9 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 2012 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Robert Kanigher, Julius Schwartz, John Romita, Bernard Sachs, John Rosenberger, Werner Roth, Bill Draut, Mike Sekowsky, Win Mortimer, John Giunta, Tony Abruzzo, Arthur Peddy, Dick Giordano, Jay Scott Pike Gene Colan & various (DC Comics) ISBN: 978-1-4012-3438-6 As the escapist popularity of flamboyant superheroes waned after World War II, newer genres such as Romance … <\/p>\n

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