{"id":30408,"date":"2024-08-25T08:00:22","date_gmt":"2024-08-25T08:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=30408"},"modified":"2024-08-23T17:01:26","modified_gmt":"2024-08-23T17:01:26","slug":"batman-the-sunday-classics-1943-1946-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2024\/08\/25\/batman-the-sunday-classics-1943-1946-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Batman: The Sunday Classics 1943-1946"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\" \"\"
\nBy Don Cameron<\/strong>, Bill Finger<\/strong>, Joe Samachson<\/strong>, Alvin Schwartz<\/strong>, Bob Kane<\/strong>, Jack Burnley<\/strong>, Fred Ray<\/strong> & various (Barnes & Noble\/DC Comics\/Kitchen Sink Press)
\nISBN: 978-1-1402-4718-2 (Album HB) 978-0-87816-148-1 (PB)<\/p>\n

This book includes Discriminatory Content<\/strong> produced in less enlightened times.<\/em><\/p>\n

If the newspaper comic strip was the 20th<\/sup> century\u2019s Holy Grail, the Holiest of Holies was a full-colour Sunday page. These stunningly produced showcases for talent were delivered to families all across America and the wider world and inescapably formed part of the fabric of the mass entertainment society: demanding and generating the best of the best. Such was absolutely the case of the 1940s Batman and Robin<\/strong> strip: coming late to the party but developing into arguably the highest quality comics-to-strips offering of all.<\/p>\n

Although a highpoint in strip cartooning, both iterations of the Batman<\/strong> feature were cursed by ill-timing. After years of dickering the daily debuted at a time when newspaper publishing was hampered by wartime rationing, and a changing marketplace meaning these strips never achieved the circulation they deserved. However, Sundays were given a new lease of life in the 1960s when DC began reprinting vintage stories in 80-Page Giants<\/strong> and Annuals<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The superior quality adventures were ideal action-mystery short stories, adding an extra cachet of exoticism for young readers already captivated by enjoying tales of their heroes that were positively ancient and redolent of History with a capital \u201cH\u201d.<\/p>\n

The stories themselves are broken down into complete single page instalments building into short tales averaging between 4 to 6 pages per adventure. Mandatory esoteric foes include such regulars as The <\/strong>Penguin<\/strong> (twice), Joker<\/strong>, Catwoman<\/strong> and Two-Face<\/strong> and all-original themed villains like The Gopher<\/em>, The Sparrow<\/em> and Falstaff<\/em>, but the bulk of the yarns offer more prosaic criminals, if indeed there is any antagonist at all. However, a policy of shorter individual story sequences means that there were 26 complete adventures for modern fans to enjoy now. especially if DC ever reprint and produce a digital edition of these classic romps\u2026<\/p>\n

A huge benefit of work produced for an audience deemed \u201cmore mature\u201d is the freedom to explore human interest stories such as exonerating wrongly convicted men, fighting forest fires or discovering the identity of an amnesia victim. There are even jolly seasonal yarns…<\/p>\n

The writers included comic book veterans Don Cameron, Bill Finger, Joe Samachson and Alvin Schwartz with art by Bob Kane, Jack Burnley and Fred Ray and inking by Win Mortimer and Charles Paris. The letterer was tireless, invisible calligraphic master Ira Schnapp and the strips were all coloured by Raymond Perry.<\/p>\n

As with the companion Dailies<\/strong> collection this compendium is packed with info features and a wealth of extra features such as biographical notes, a history of the strip, promotional features and artefacts, behind-the-scenes artwork and sketches, and much more: offering history, context, appraisals, appreciations and a wealth of merchandising material courtesy of Joe Desris. These are divided into \u2018Getting the Job Done\u2019<\/em>, \u2018A History of the Batman and Robin Sundays\u2019<\/em>, \u2018Biographies\u2019<\/em>, \u2018Bubble Gum Similarities\u2019<\/em>, \u2018Previous Reprintings\u2019<\/em>, \u2018The McClure Syndicate\u2019s Promotional Book\u2019<\/em>, \u2018Jack Burnley\u2019s Pencils\u2019<\/em> plus contemporaneous article \u2018Batman – Backward Looking and Forward Leaning\u2019<\/em> by scripter Alvin Schwartz.<\/p>\n

With far more emphasis on fun and thrills and less of murder and sinister extended-by-design skulduggery, the masked manhunters launch the Sunday sessions with Cameron – or possibly Samachson – Kane & Paris depicting \u2018The Penguin\u2019s Crime-Thunderstorms\u2019<\/em> (weeks 1-6, November 7th<\/sup> – December 12th<\/sup> 1943). This brief introductory sally sees the Dynamic Duo thwarting the bird-based bandit\u2019s cunning scheme to use bad weather and his patented uniquely weaponised bumbershoots to pluck penniless the most infamous miser in Gotham.<\/p>\n

Weeks 7-10 (December 19th<\/sup> 1943 – January 9th<\/sup> 1944 by Finger, Kane & Paris) set a nautical themes as \u2018The Secret of Cap\u2019n Plankton\u2019s Ghost\u2019<\/em> finds our playboy heroes fishing in their civilian identities when the resort of Pirate\u2019s Cove is raided by an ancient vessel packing very modern artillery. The robbed rich folk all believe it the last descendent of an infamous old buccaneer, but Batman and Robin find that\u2019s not the case at all when they lower the boom on the true culprits…<\/p>\n

Finger, Burnley & Paris produced the next dozen delights beginning with western teaser \u2018Jesse James Rides Again!\u2019<\/em> (weeks 11-15, January 16th<\/sup> – February 13th<\/sup> 1944) as a train robbery reenactment is hijacked by opportunistic modern bandits with a degree of panache after which \u2018The Undersea Bank Bandits\u2019<\/em> (16-20 February 20th<\/sup> – March 19th<\/sup> 1944) employ mining and diving techniques to plunder from below Gotham\u2019s streets whilst \u2018Liquid Gold!\u2019<\/em> (21-26, March 26th<\/sup> – April 30th<\/sup>) finds our heroes out west helping prospector\u2019s daughter Ruth Parker<\/em> bring in her first oil well despite the machinations of a cunning property speculator…<\/p>\n

Comedy loomed large in \u2018Cap\u2019n Alfred\u2019<\/em> (weeks 27-31, May 7th<\/sup> – June 4th<\/sup>) as the faithful manservant dabbles in nautical lore and celebrates his family\u2019s maritime heritage by taking a part-time job skippering the Gotham Ferry. His tenure begins in the middle of a major hijacking spree but – happily for all concerned – his usual employers had come aboard to see him shine… or not…<\/p>\n

A truly crafty, twisty tale of cross and double-cross follows as the Dynamic Duo rush to prove the innocence of a man who claims to be \u2018Death Row\u2019s Innocent Resident\u2019<\/em> (32-39, June 11th<\/sup> – July 30th<\/sup>) after which Jack Burnley joined Finger and Paris for a season of superb thrillers starting with \u2018The Mardi Gras Mystery\u2019<\/em> (40-46, August 6th<\/sup> – September 17th<\/sup>) as Bruce and Dick head to the Big Easy and stumble into a deadly con game turned lethal treasure hunt led by a genially murderous giant dubbed Falstaff<\/em>…<\/p>\n

Back home and enjoying the bucolic delights of an upstate County Fair, the off-duty Duo discover that \u2018An Attic Full of Art\u2019<\/em> (weeks 47-53, September 17th<\/sup> – November 5th<\/sup>) left to a couple of innocent hicks is plenty of reason for city slicker art dealer Maxwell<\/em> to connive, cheat and even commit murder to corner the market. Time for the other suits, lads…<\/p>\n

The year turned with a beguiling fantasy fable as \u2018There Was a Crooked Man\u2026\u2019<\/em> (54-61, November 12th<\/sup>– December 31st<\/sup> 1944) saw our heroes drawn into a seemingly sinister chase across the seediest sectors of Gotham in pursuit of a villain out of a nursery rhyme. There was however, a solid sensible explanation for the rollercoaster rush & tumble…<\/p>\n

Things turn deadly serious during a visit to timber country as \u2018Holy Smoke!\u2019<\/em> (62-68, January 7th<\/sup> – February 18th<\/sup> 1945) sees a recovering pyromaniac scapegoated for a series of deliberate fires, until Batman deduces the real reason and exposes the true culprit after which humour and pathos return in \u2018An English Sassiety Skoit\u2019<\/em>, (69-72, February 25th<\/sup> – March 18th<\/sup>). When a pretty con-artist impersonates Alfred\u2019s never-seen Australian niece and looks to cash in on the Wayne fortune, Batman and Robin must intervene with breaking the old soul\u2019s heart, but severely underestimate their manservant\u2019s detective skills, after which the heroes head out west again and find \u2018Rustling on a Reservation\u2019<\/em> (73-78, March 25th<\/sup> – April 29th<\/sup>) whilst helping \u201cPueblo Indians\u201d stop a systematic plunder spree designed to starve them out and steal their ancestral lands…<\/p>\n

Another spate of subsurface capers signal the debut of an engineering super-criminal as \u2018The Gopher: King of the Underworld!\u2019<\/em> (79-85, May 6th<\/sup> – June 17th<\/sup>) has bandits use tunnels and building works in their thefts, leading the Caped Crusaders a merry dance down below before good old detective digging unearths the mystery mastermind.<\/p>\n

Bob Kane returned in 15th<\/sup> tale \u2018The Tale of the Tinker Diamond\u2019<\/em> (weeks 86-90, June 24th<\/sup> – July 22nd<\/sup>) as a gem cutter\u2019s son is kidnapped to force his collusion in a massive jewel heist – until Batman intervenes – after which Schwartz, Burnley & Paris open the first of eight consecutive adventures with \u2018A Pretty Amnesiac\u2019<\/em> (91-97 July 29th<\/sup> – September 9th<\/sup>). When the Gotham Gangbusters save a young woman from brutal abductors they discover she has no memory and no identifying property, marks or characteristics. With the victim still hunted by her kidnappers, the World\u2019s Greatest Detectives must identify her and stop an unimaginable injustice from occurring…<\/p>\n

\u2018Devil\u2019s Reef\u2019<\/em> (98-103, September 16th<\/sup>– October 21st<\/sup>) details how Batman\u2019s cross-continental manhunt for modern-day pirates The Miller Gang<\/em> coincides with and converges on Alfred\u2019s new hobby of treasure hunting, leading to a deadly entombment and spectacular escape before The Joker<\/strong> breaks jail to clash with new rival The Sparrow who constantly proves herself to be \u2018Gotham\u2019s Cleverest Criminal\u2019<\/em> (104-110, October 28th<\/sup> – December 9th<\/sup>)… until the Dynamic Duo capture them both.<\/p>\n

A fortnight of festive fun and sugar-candy sentiment follows the faithful butler playing \u2018Alfred Clau<\/em>s\u2019 (weeks 111-112, December 16th<\/sup> – 23rd<\/sup>) to a group of dead-end kids before a new year beckons and begins the final newspaper cases in \u2018Twelvetoes\u2019<\/em> (113-118, December 30th<\/sup> 1945-February 3rd<\/sup> 1946). Here an underweight, under-paid beat cop is – somehow! – set to marry a millionairess, but only if an old bankrupt rou\u00e9 with eyes on her bank figures can be stopped from \u201cremoving\u201d his rival in blue. Happily, Batman and Robin are on hand to aid and save the connubial underdog, before we enjoy the most influential strip story of all as \u2018Oswald Who?\u2019<\/em> (February 10th<\/sup> – March 10th<\/sup>) sees the Dynamic Duo enjoying themselves immensely escorting The Penguin around Gotham as the Wily Old Bird seeks to impress his dowager Aunt Miranda<\/em>. Of course, his best efforts end with him hunted by other hoods for collaborating with the enemy and behind bars once the old lady is safely off home, but at least Batman and all of us now know the villain\u2019s real identity… Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot<\/em>: a one-off gag that has become a confirmed snippet of Bat-Lore…<\/p>\n

\u2018Hotel Grandeur\u2019<\/em> (124-129, March 17th<\/sup> – April 21st<\/sup>) set a missing person mystery in a resort building housing the population and resources of a small city, with Bruce and Batman both hunting an abducted finance minister from Europe through its labyrinthine corridors and tunnels before \u2018Catwoman\u2019s Grasshopper Chase\u2019<\/em> (130-137, April 28th<\/sup> – June 16th<\/sup>) sees Fred Ray (Superman<\/strong>, Tomahawk<\/strong>, Congo Bill<\/strong>) alternating pencilling with Burnley and Win Mortimer inking Schwartz\u2019s tale of the hunted felon going on the offensive and trying to trash Batman\u2019s reputation for infallibility by making him a laughing stock… yet another time the Dark Knight\u2019s strategy demands Robin dress up as girl…<\/p>\n

Finger, Burnley & Mortimer remodelled the story of Two-Face<\/em> in \u2018Half Man – Half Monster\u2019<\/em> (138-146, June 23rd<\/sup> – August 18th<\/sup>) as actor Harvey Apollo<\/em> is driven mad after an acid attack whilst on the witness stand. In the newspaper strip, his subsequent crime and killing spree has no cure or happy ending after Batman is forced to stop him…<\/p>\n

When seer and mystic Jandor<\/em> is murdered live on air by robbers \u2018The Curse of the Four Fates!\u2019<\/em> (147-154, August 25 – October 13th<\/sup> by Finger, Burnley & Paris) that he gasps out inexorably punishes the perpetrators despite every effort of the Caped Crimebusters to catch and\/or save them. The Sunday ventures conclude with Schwartz, Burnley & Paris\u2019 brief bout of \u2018Tire Tread Deathtrap\u2019<\/em> (weeks 155-156, October 20th<\/sup> & 27th<\/sup> 1946) as a set of tracks lead to the heroes entering and escaping a cunning ambush and getting their man one last time…<\/p>\n

This amazing compilation ends with tantalising lost treats beginning with some unattributed Batman strips from an abortive revival in \u2018Later Newspaper Strips: 1953\u2019<\/em>, backed up by \u2018Later Newspaper Strips: 1966\u2019<\/em>: offering Dailies from that successful venture which you can find fully collected in 3 volumes of Batman: Silver Age Dailies and Sundays<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Also on view are \u2018Later Newspaper Strips: 1978\u2019<\/em> by Martin Pasko, George Tuska & Vince Colletta featuring Superman <\/strong>and Wonder Woman<\/strong> from Justice League<\/strong> based feature The World\u2019s Greatest Superheroes<\/strong> plus \u2018The Superman Sunday Special\u2019 <\/em>activity page by Jos\u00e9 Luis Garc\u00eda-L\u00f3pez and examples of the Batman strip revival engendered by the first Tim Burton movie. \u2018Later Newspaper Strips: 1989\u2019<\/em> offers segments by Max Allan Collins, Bill Messner-Loebs, Carmine Infantino (as \u201cCinfa\u201d) Marshal Rogers & John Nyberg with the entire celebration closing with a discussion of (Dick) \u2018Tracy\u2019s Influence\u2019<\/em>: comparing names, locales and especially the pioneering strip\u2019s preponderance of grotesque villains…
\n\"\"
\nThis lovely oversized (241 x 318 mm) full colour hardback and softcover tome was originally published in conjunction by DC Comics & Kitchen Sink Press in 1991, and is filled with death traps, daring escapes, canny ratiocination, moving melodrama, stirring sentiment and lots and lots of astounding action: in fact a perfect Batman book. It\u2019s long past time it was back in print – and eBooked too – as it\u2019s a must for both Bat-fans and lovers of the artform.
\n\u00a9 1991, 2007 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Don Cameron, Bill Finger, Joe Samachson, Alvin Schwartz, Bob Kane, Jack Burnley, Fred Ray & various (Barnes & Noble\/DC Comics\/Kitchen Sink Press) ISBN: 978-1-1402-4718-2 (Album HB) 978-0-87816-148-1 (PB) This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times. If the newspaper comic strip was the 20th century\u2019s Holy Grail, the Holiest of Holies was … <\/p>\n

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