ABBOTT AND COSTELLO #5 , November 1968

Based not on the films, but rather Hanna-Barbera's cartoon, ABBOTT AND COSTELLO ran for an impressive 22 issues, from 1968 to 1971.
This issue written entirely by Stephen Skeates has the usual A & C slapstick but also pokes fun at both the superhero genre and the current spy craze that was on TV. All the A&C portions, including the cover were drawn by Henry Scarpelli.
The real gem of this issue is part one of Skeates' "Little Orphan Riding Hood" with art by master humorist Grass Green and the impeccable inks of Ernie Bache.
According to Skeates in a comment on the Charlton facebook page,THE CHARLTON ARROW " It was originally done for an issue of Go-Go, but my references therewithin to the Viet Nam War were too controversial for the time! It was held onto until the war was closer to being over and nobody much was really into it anymore!--
I was quite upset when it didn't get into Go-Go and happy as all get-out when it finally got published!! For one thing, I finally got to see the great work Grass and Ernie did artwise!"

KONGA MONTH: PART 5:--The final Ditko back-up

Our final Ditko back-up from KONGA (#9 ,November 1962) is a departure, in that unlike the previous stories, this one is not a non-fiction/informational piece. Instead, it's a morality play on the dangers of greed and instant wealth.Ditko shows off his playful side in the last panel with a classic "faint from bad news" gag.
Ditko would continue on with KONGA for quite some time, but this would be his final back-up feature for the series.

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KONGA MONTH! part 4--even more Ditko back-ups!

Part Four of KONGA Month,with another Ditko 3 page back-up. This one, from issue #8, tells of man's ability to adapt and evolve to rise to the top of the food chain.
The caption in the final panel assures the reader that humankind will prevail against whatever it comes up against.
However, Ditko's art tells us an entirely different story. A family watches as an atomic bomb detonates in the distance. The father has his eyes closed in silent contemplation and resignation, his arm around his family giving them one final gesture of reassurance. The mother looks on in abject horror, while the baby cries, perhaps giving voice to the millions of lives being snuffed out at that very instant.

 

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KONGA month--part three! Ditko back-ups continue!

Part three of our look at the KONGA back-up features from Ditko.
Here we have a short look at the Incas, Mayans, and Atlantis from issue #7,July 1962.
Of particular interest is the host Professor Trams ("smart" spelled backwards!) who appears to actually be Ditko's friend and studio-mate, fetish cartoonist Eric Stanton!

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KONGA Month Continues: more Ditko back-ups

KONGA month continues here at the Library, with this three page Ditko back-up from issue #6, May 1962.
There's some rather dynamic panels in this one, especially the one with the gorrilla defending it's mate and child against a pack of big cats!

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KONGA month! The Ditko back-up stories!

DITKO MONSTERS: Volume Two- KONGA, edited and designed by Craig Yoe,  hits the shelves in just a few short weeks, (which I will be reviewing once my copy arrives from Yoe/IDW!) and I thought it would be interesting to see the non-Konga back up features Ditko drew for the series.
First up is "The Rulers", a nice three-pager from issue #3, October 1961. Ditko shows he can not only draw monsters, but is quite adept at dinosaurs as well! More Konga back-ups to come in the following days and weeks! Stay tuned!

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