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Home , Captain Midnight, Fawcett Publications, Green Lama, Lou Fine, Mac Raboy, Master Comics

Captain Marvel Jr. TM & © DC Comics DC © & TM Jr. Marvel Captain

Introduction by Chapter Four

Little Boy Blue

Ed Herron had come to Fawcett with a successful track record of writing Explosive is the best way to describe this iconic, colorful cover (on opposite page) by and creating characters that had gone on to greater popularity, , whose renditions of a teen-age super-hero with a realistic physique was noth- including work on the earliest stories of Timely’s colorful — ing less than perfect. Captain Marvel Jr. #4, (Feb. 19, 1943). Inset bottom is Raboy’s first and his kid . It was during the fall of 1941 that Herron came cover for Fawcett and the first of the CMJr origin trilogy, #21 (Dec. 1941). Below up with the idea of a new addition to the Fawcett family. With Captain is a vignette derived from Raboy’s cover art for Captain Marvel Jr. #26 (Jan. 1, 1945). Marvel sales increasing dramatically since his debut in February 1940, Fawcett management figured a teenage version of the “Big Cheese” would only increase their profits. Herron liked Raboy’s art very much, and wanted a more illustrative style for the new addition, as opposed to the C. C. Beck or simplified approach on Captain Marvel. The new boy-hero was ably dubbed Captain Marvel Jr., and it was Mac Raboy who was given the job of visualizing him for the very first time. Jr.’s basic attire was blue, with a red cape. His boots, sash, and trim, were the same as Captain Marvel’s: gold! A brilliant costume of color if ever there was—and with Raboy’s superb draftsmanship, coupled with stories written by , Joe Millard, Manly Wade Wellman, and Bill Woolfolk, a sure-fire success on the newsstands was in order.

LITTLE BOY BLUE 27 Chapter Five

Helping Hands

Even though he was the slowest artist working for Fawcett in those days, the company obviously thought a lot of his work. They especially loved his covers, which were always well-designed and attractive. In 1941 and ’42, Mac produced some classic cover images for other Fawcett titles besides Master, including America’s Greatest Comics, Bulletman, , , and Xmas Comics. With the increased workload it became obvious to the Fawcett editors that Mac would never be able to keep up with the growing amount of work. The decision was made to hire someone who could give Mac some help on backgrounds. That help came almost immediately from a young man by the name of Rubin Zubofsky, who at age nineteen came knocking at Fawcett’s door in January of 1942. Zubofsky was interviewed by editor Herron

Above house ad from Fawcett touting the and co-editor John Beardsley, who, massive semi-regular annual Xmas Comics, which consisted of 324 pages and sold for during the course of the interview, 50¢! The first issue’s cover (seen here, from 1941) was illustrated by Mac Raboy. requested him to produce a drawing in their presence. After completing Inset right is a Mighty Midget Comic edition— this one, Bulletman (#11)—which are 5" x 4" it, he was hired at a salary of $35 a miniature reprint comics sold in sets of four by publisher Samuel E. Lowe & Co., in 1942. week as an assistant to Mac Raboy. This meant providing pencils and Next page is Mac Raboy’s work on the cover of America’s Greatest Comics #1 (Fall 1941), inks on backgrounds for Raboy’s a 100-page quarterly, demonstrating Raboy’s special talent for drawing the human figure. covers or stories.

34 Chapter Five Associate Interview

Bob Rogers/Rubin Zubofsky, Man in the Background AUTHOR’S NOTE Bob Rogers was born Rubin L. Zubofsky ROGER HILL: I can’t tell you just how in , New York, on January 15, 1923. Raised in that borough, he attended the High surprised and happy I was to find out School of Music & Art, from where he gradu- that you are, or were, the original ated in 1941. That summer, quite by chance, he was introduced to artist Myron Strauss Rubin Zubofsky. I was looking for you (1917–99) by a girlfriend he was dating. Rubin, two years ago, at the beginning of my who was anxious to get into an art business of any kind, began working with Strauss on a research on this whole Raboy project, feature called “Liberty Scouts” for the Comic and couldn’t find any Zubofsky listed Corporation of America, also known as Centaur Publications. His first collaborative efforts with anywhere! After what I had read in Strauss, penciling and inking backgrounds, Steranko’s History of the Comics about showed up in Liberty Scouts #3, dated Aug. 1941. Strauss was renting studio space at a you, and from a letter by [Fawcett photostat firm and, right after Pearl Harbor, editor] Wendell Crowley [published in received his Army draft notice from . Rubin—going by the nick name of “Ruby”— Alter Ego Vol. 1, #8], I knew you were finished his last job with Strauss, assisting one of the key figures in the scheme on Stars and Stripes Comics #5 (Nov. 1941). Strauss left for military duty on Jan. 1, 1942, of things. and, a month or so before leaving, introduced Ruby to Lou Fine, a good friend of Strauss, BOB ROGERS: Rubin Zubofsky… who was also in need of a background man. Fine was already familiar with Ruby’s work nicknamed Ruby! That is my real for Strauss and hired him right away, without name. During the war, my parents anglicized it. At some point, my mother wrote reviewing his samples. and told me they had changed the name to Rogers, and I thought, “Gee whiz, I’d At that time, Fine’s studio was located in a high-rise residential building in , like to go along with the family.” But I decided not to do it until after I got out of called Tudor City, where Ruby began assist- the service or I’d screw up my records. So I waited until after the war. ing on features such as “Uncle Sam,” “The Ray,” “Hercules,” and “.” Within RH: You were using the nickname “Ruby” at Fawcett, right? You know, it was months, the young assistant had moved on to , where he was hired to originally believed that Mac Raboy had changed his name from Rabinowitz to specifically work with Mac Raboy on back- Raboy. grounds. From then on, it was a mad dash to keep up with deadlines turning out Cap- tain Marvel Jr. stories and covers, with Mac ROGERS: I guess a lot of erroneous data gets thrown around out there. It’s directing the action. This frantic pace continued funny how little bits and pieces have come back into my recollection that I had until Ruby was also drafted in the Army, in late 1942. After his discharge from military service forgotten about. I only recently remembered that I had shortened my name to in Sept. 1945, he anglicized his last name to “Zubof” for Fawcett! [laughs] I even went out and got myself a separate Social Rogers, following family wishes, and changed his first name to Bob. He and his brother Hank Security card, which said “Rubin Zubof,” which was legal then. opened a photography store for a short period of time. By November of that year, Bob was RH: We’ve been discussing by email the “mystery artist” who helped you get back at Fawcett doing background work, only started in the comic book business as his apprentice; but so far we haven’t been now for Bud Thompson who had taken over the majority of art chores on Captain Marvel Jr. able to come up with a name, right? You seem to think it was someone called following Raboy’s departure. Myron. And your son-in-law Dan and I suggested to you that it might have been Continued on next page

40 Associate Interview ROGERS: That’s amazing. He wouldn’t give me $5 for my raise.

RH: So you talked to Arnold and he turned you down?

ROGERS: No, I don’t remember how it came about. Whether Lou spoke up for me or someone approached him for me, I didn’t actually do it myself, so Lou said, “Well, I don’t blame you, you’re well worth it.” He told me that what I should do is see if I could pick up some extra work. So I got together a few examples of what I had done. I wish I still had them. You know, the books where I had done “The Ray” and “The Spirit,” and all the others. I took these samples around, and one of the places I went to was Fawcett. A fellow there by the name of [comics editor/writer] Ed Herron interviewed me, and he looked at the work I showed him, and he said, “Wait here.” Display signage—featuring C. C. Beck art— promoting the R. W. Kerr plastic figurines of He went inside and another fellow came out and said, “How’d you like to work Fawcett “” super-hero charac- for Fawcett?” He said, “How much are you earning?” And I was real sharp and ters, Captain Marvel, Captain Marvel Jr., , and Hoppy the Marvel Bunny. said, “$20 a week.” Then he offered what was almost double that. $35 a week! I thought I’d died and gone to heaven! I mean, I was looking for a $5 raise. Thirty- five… holy smoke, now I could get married! [laughs] So the guy says, “Would you mind coming inside and drawing something for us?” I said, “No, not at all.” And so, they took me into the art department, which was quite large, with artists all lined up with their tables. They sat me down at a table and gave me something to draw, and I don’t remember what the it was, but I drew it. Then they talked a little bit among themselves and said, “You’re hired.” So that’s how that came to pass.

RH: I believe Ed Herron was Fawcett’s first comics editor. Another guy around These statuettes from 1946 measured there was Otto Binder, one of the greatest and most prolific writers who worked 6½" tall and were hand-painted. They were in comics. included in packages featuring Beck artwork.

46 Associate Interview Chapter Six

Mac Raboy Makes Three

Captain Marvel Jr. was introduced in Master Comics in late 1941. A year later, due to In November of 1942, Captain Marvel Jr. #1 hit the newsstands of reader popularity, was given his own title, with the first issue sporting this grand Raboy cover. America. Raboy’s cover showed a leaping figure of the young hero, set against a brilliant yellow moon in the background, surrounded by black. A simple design, yet most effective as an eye-catcher for kids browsing the racks. Inside the book… not one page of Raboy’s art was to be found! The work was very similar to his, but was entirely provided by assistants. This style of art, produced mostly by McDonald, Mohler, or others, would cause some confusion to comic book historians and collectors for the next 50 years. Under Mac’s personal guidance, Mohler and McDonald provided most of the art for the new title and also assisted Mac, as required, on stories he was drawing for Master. To maintain the special “Raboy mystique” in their work on the “CMJr” stories, Gene and Red were shown a new time-saving device for emulating Raboy’s style of art: a projection camera! In the past,

60 Chapter Six photostats had been cut out and pasted down to make new panels. Now, a group of photostats—showing every imaginable figure drawing of Captain Marvel Jr. that Raboy had ever done—were kept nearby so all the assistants had easy access to them. The artist could leaf through the figures, pick out the appropriate one, size it through the projector onto the new panel where it was needed, and simply trace it off. By this method Fawcett editors were able to insure that Raboy’s style of art remained visible throughout the work. Fawcett readers identified with this style and expected it to be there from month to month. In early 1943, the comic art staff at Fawcett converted mostly to a freelance status. Comics editor Rod Reed left in June and was replaced by Will Lieberson. Mac Raboy had moved into a studio space located on 42nd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. Occasionally Red Mohler The spirit of his “family patriarchs,” Captain Marvel Sr. and the old loom and his wife, Duffy (a letterer), would share this space, working on the about a ready-for-action Captain Marvel Jr. on the cover of Master Comics #23 (Feb. 1942), “CMJr” feature with Mac. Gene McDonald began doing work on his own, which featured the second appearance of the super-hero in the title. CMJr would headline and other freelance artists started drawing “Junior” stories for Fawcett, as the comic book until its demise, in late winter, 1953, with issue #133. well. Dick Krause became executive editor on Master and Captain Marvel Jr., answering to Lieberson. , the artist who, with Jerry Siegel, Bernard Baily became a studio partner and in 1940, had co-created the Spectre for National/DC, also began producing close friend with Mac Raboy during the 1940s. Years earlier, while working with writer Jerry “CMJr” stories around this time. This opportunity probably resulted when Siegel (best known as co-creator of ), he originated The Spectre, who made his debut Raboy and Baily formed their own commercial art studio together sometime in More Fun Comics. Seen below is Baily’s cover for issue #62 (Dec. 1940). At center is a during the early ’40s. Commercial accounts paid much better than comic photo of Baily taken in the ’70s.

MAC RABOY MAKES THREE 61 THE SPY SMASHER Fellow Fawcett artist alumni C. C. Beck confirmed many years ago to Fawcett historian P. C. Hamerlinck that Raboy painted the Spy Smasher premium created for the 12-chapter Spy Smasher serial, released by Republic Studios in 1942. This premium, pictured in the film’s promotional pressbook, is described as a “Four Color Autographed Fan Photo,” made available to theater managers at a cost of $2.25 per thousand or $2 per thousand in lots of 3,000 or more. It is considered one of the rarest Fawcett premiums ever created.

MAC RABOY MAKES THREE 65 Associate Interview

Gene McDonald: In the Presence of Greatness

ROGER HILL: How did you come to work for Fawcett Publications, Gene? AUTHOR’S NOTE Gene McDonald was born on June 17, 1918 GENE McDONALD: I was going to the Grand Central Art School, attending in Macon, Georgia. When he was six months old, his family moved to Alliance, Nebraska. Harvey Dunn’s night class. There was a fellow there in the class named Irwin At the age of five, Gene and the family moved Wile who was what they called a layout man. He was doing layouts on some to Omaha, then back to Alliance, where he - ished school. When he was 20, he set out for magazine over at Fawcett. Irwin got me and Red Mohler jobs there working with . The year was 1938 and he se- Mac Raboy. You know, word of mouth, in other words. cured a job working for the A. C. Hielson Com- pany preparing sales charts for merchandisers RH: Do you remember who interviewed you at Fawcett to get the job? in the food and drug business. He worked there until the opportunity arose to work for Fawcett McDONALD: I don’t remember any interviews. As far as I know, we just went Publications in 1942. He began as an assistant to Mac Raboy, working on the Captain Marvel in, said hello to Mac and sat down to work. I don’t remember any interview. Jr. comic book. When most of the artists on the We all worked in the bullpen there in the old Paramount Building at 43rd Street Fawcett comic art staff went freelance in 1943, Gene stayed with Raboy, continuing to assist and Broadway. They took that building down a long time ago to put up a new him on Captain Marvel Jr. and, later on, the high-rise. I don’t know whether they destroyed the old Astor Hotel or not, but I Gordon newspaper strip. Gene was 81 years old when I first contacted suppose they did. I haven’t been there since a very long time ago. I ought to go him and, although I never met him in person, back and look around sometime. he was an interesting fellow to talk with on the phone. I was surprised to learn that, since his RH: Didn’t you hire in at Fawcett around 1943 or 1944? days of working in the comics, Gene had held on to many of the original photostats of Captain McDONALD: No, it was before that. It must of been 1942, because I remember it Marvel Jr. figures, drawn by Raboy, which they used to cut up and paste-in to panels trying to was right after the war started. In fact, I was amazed at the time that they were meet deadlines. He was nice enough to loan getting ready to produce that comic book on such short notice. The war had those to me for copying and use throughout this book. A tip of the hat goes to my friend just started. Joe Desris for putting me in touch with Gene. Unfortunately, Gene passed away RH: You’re referring to when Fawcett decided to give Captain Marvel Jr. his own on Jan. 8, 2000. comic title? That first issue came out dated November 1942. Below is sample of the Fawcett Publications letterhead from the 1940s. McDONALD: Yeah, that’s right.

RH: And were you hired there just to work specifically on Captain Marvel Jr.?

McDONALD: Yes, just as an assistant to Mac.

RH: Mac was a very slow artist from what I understand.

McDONALD: Oh, yeah. Mac was very slow, but he did beautiful work. That’s why he was slow.

RH: Right. He had a beautiful brush style too. Do you

GENE McDONALD remember what size brush he used?

McDONALD: I think it was probably a number 2 Winsor & Newton.

RH: Now when you say you were hired to assist Mac, did that mean just on backgrounds or what?

McDONALD: No, we did backgrounds and figures.

RH: And were you told to emulate Raboy’s style?

McDONALD: Yes. Well, we had a machine in the corner there that we used. It was called an opaque projector.

RH: Sure, I’ve heard of them.

McDONALD: And we would get a photostat of Captain Marvel Jr. in the right pose that we wanted and put it in that projector. Then we’d trace it off. We had to do that because they wanted to hurry things up. It was supposed to be a production line sort of thing, you see. I mean, we could sit down and copy one of Mac’s drawings freehand if we had to, but why do that if you have a machine?

RH: Right, that’s why comic collectors and historians have been confused as to what exactly Mac did on the Captain Marvel Jr. comic book ever since they were published. I’m sure, using those methods you described, it saved a lot of time and effort. Had you had any pen-&-ink experience before coming to Fawcett?

McDONALD: No. I hadn’t had any. [laughter] None at all. The only thing I had done up to that point was pitch hay to a bunch of stupid cattle out in the Northern Plains. And that was backbreaking labor.

Above are photos of Gene McDonald taken in RH: So, working for Fawcett: you had to learn how to hold and use a brush, I years after his Fawcett tenure. Below is Captain take it. Marvel Jr. #30 (May 1945) cover probably by Bud Thompson. McDONALD: Yes, everything. It was murder. To go from pitching hay to handling those delicate brushes and making fine lines with them.

RH: Okay, so you were assisting Mac on his work. And did the editors there also let you do some stories on your own?

McDONALD: Well, yes, later on. I think Mac had left by then. Mac had left and started working in an office over on 42nd Street, between Sixth and Seventh Avenue.

RH: This was probably the Bernard Baily shop where Mac leased space?

McDONALD: Yes, that rings a bell. Me and Red Mohler were doing things on our own for Fawcett. I did a few stories for them, but my heart just wasn’t in it. I really didn’t want to be drawing comics.

RH: Why is that, Gene?

McDONALD: It was just too awkward for me. I felt like I was doing something I wasn’t trained for or qualified for. That’s why I drank a lot back in those days.

82 Associate Interview Chapter Seven

A Spark of Green

In mid-1944, assistant editor Ken Crossen left Fawcett to start his own comic book publishing company. He decided to resurrect the Green character he had created in 1940 as a pulp-magazine hero and had later adapted into a comic book series for Prize Publications. He convinced Raboy that the artist should quit Fawcett to join him at his new publishing company, to be known as Spark Publications, promising more than just a page rate. Crossen offered a percentage of the profits, which, in 1944, was almost unheard of for any comic artist. He also offered Mac the prestigious title of art editor. It proved an offer Raboy could not refuse. With a half-dozen capable artists now providing the bulk of the Captain Marvel Jr. artwork anyway, Fawcett editors bade farewell to Mac Raboy. He left with an agreement that, if time permitted, he would still occasionally provide a cover illustration for Captain Marvel Jr., which he did until mid-1945. Oddly enough, in May 1944 a beautiful Raboy drawing appeared on the cover of Dynamic Comics #9. This comic, originally produced by one of Raboy’s first employers, Harry “A” Chesler, had run three issues between 1941 and 1942, before having its plug pulled due to paper quota cutbacks at the outset of World War II.

As discussed here, the cover for Dynamic Comics #9 (possibly Raboy’s very first cover) was drawn while working in the Harry A. Chesler shop in 1941 or ’42. For reasons unknown, the art laid in limbo until the issue was published, in 1944. The original art, still in existence today, was inspected by this author in 2005. It is executed with pen and ink, with charcoal pencil shading on pebble board.

A SPARK OF GREEN 99 Closer Look

Ken Crossen and the Comics of Spark Publications

Kendell Foster Crossen was born on July 25, 1910, in Albany, Ohio. After graduating high school there, he attended Rio Grande College and wound up working for The Gallipolis Tribune. During his formative years, his favorite hobbies were magic, model trains, and chess. After college, Crossen worked at a variety of jobs, including that of tallyman for steel mills, an electric truckman in an auto plant, a gas station attendant, straight man in tent and medicine shows, and, for a while, he was even half-owner of a bootleg operation. Aside from these interesting jobs, in his spare time he was also an amateur boxer. In 1935, Crossen moved to New York City, where he found employment as a writer in the WPA (Works Progress Administration) and, for a short time, he became an insurance investigator. In 1937, after answering an ad for the Munsey Publishing Co., Crossen

Above is a photo from 1960 of was hired as an assistant editor for Detective Fiction Weekly, a creator Ken Crossen and friend. On this page and next are various pulp covers starring GL. devoted to mystery stories. At this time, he started writing stories using the names Richard Foster, Bennett Barlay, Kent Richards, and several others (including his own). Between 1937–40, he edited other magazines, including Baffling Detective, Detective Cases, Keyhole Detective Cases, Stirring

Detective Cases, Movie Play, and other pulp magazine titles. He also wrote his first Green Lama story, which appeared in the April 1940 issue of Double Detective Magazine. Writing in 1976, Crossen recalled, “The character was created because the publisher, the Frank A. Munsey Company, wanted a competitor for , published by a rival publishing company.” The Green Lama was originally a crime-fighting Buddhist hero whose powers emerged upon reciting a Tibetan , “.” These stories are often considered to be science-fiction or fantasy due to the Lama and other characters possessing super-human

102 Closer Look Chapter Eight

A Flash of Gold

For the next couple of years, Raboy’s work was not to be found in the comics. He continued to establish and work on commercial accounts. Sometime between 1945–47, he landed an account providing beautiful full-page illustrations advertising The Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper. These detailed renderings depict- ed daily commerce of 18th century Colonial Philadelphia establishments, and were exquisitely executed with pen-&-ink on scratchboard. Each one of these, which appeared in Fortune magazine, was signed by the artist. This work reflected Mac’s personal interests in U.S. history (though he was especially keen on the Civil War). Then, in spring 1948, hired Raboy to take over the Sunday page from departing Austin Briggs, who had been drawing the strip since creator ’s exit in 1943. Raboy, who had idolized Raymond’s style of art for many years, decided he was ready to take it on. His first Sunday page appeared on August 1, 1948, beginning a new story with

116 Chapter Eight Epilogue

David Raboy: The Son of Mac Raboy Speaks

ROGER HILL: David, I appreciate you taking the time to talk with me about your father. I have to ask you right off—was his last name originally “Rabinowitz”?

DAVID RABOY: No. My great grandfather’s Ellis Island papers show the name was “Raboi.” These were the papers he brought with him. My grandfather preceded my great grandfather and, when he came over, he departed Ellis Island with the name spelled “Raboy.” So I’m guessing that “i” became “y” on Ellis Island. It got “Anglofied.” My grandfather came with one or two other brothers when they were quite young. There were nine brothers altogether, and after they had established themselves with jobs and so on, they brought the other brothers and my great grandfather across.

RH: And the name “Raboi” originates from where?

RABOY: Bessarabka.

RH: Do you know how to spell that? David Raboy. RABOY: [Laughs] No. All I know is that it is somewhere in eastern Romania.

AUTHOR’S NOTE RH: Was your dad’s name Emanuel or Manuel? David Raboy has worked as a zoo director in various locations in the , RABOY: Manuel. But all of my life, when he was alive, I never once heard him including Syracuse, New York and Waco, Texas. referred to as Manuel. No one ever called him anything but Mac. He retired in 2004, after 11 years at the helm of the Buttonwood Park Zoo in New Bedford, Massachusetts. RH: I understand your grandfather’s name was Isaac, and that he worked in a hat While growing up in the woods of Goldens factory and wrote several books. Bridge, New York, David learned much from his father about building things. Mac Raboy had RABOY: And essays, poetry, and political polemics, and so on. a love for animals, a passion for conservation and science, and an awareness of all things RH: I believe he eventually moved to the Midwest later on, didn’t he? that played into that. David developed similar interests during those years and eventually RABOY: He moved to North Dakota, which is probably a little further than what earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Animal Science and Animal Behavior. most people think of as the Midwest. He was a horse-handler on a horse ranch He has worked as a zoo director, which en- just outside of Gladstone, North Dakota. He wrote a couple of books about tailed the planning and building of new zoos to that experience. replace old ones. David has loaned his abilities to the development of zoo facilities all over the All his books were written in Jewish [Hebrew]. I don’t read Jewish. Two of United States, including the building of new them, however, were translated into English. The Nine Brothers is about him and zoos in Syracuse, New York; Waco, Texas; and New Bedford, Massachusetts. his brothers coming to this country, and The Jewish Cowboy was more

138 Epilogue specifically about experiences in North Dakota. He was there for just a year or a couple of years. The other brothers and their father had a fairly large dairy farm in Connecticut, and my grandfather had graduated from an agricultural college in New Jersey. So he was asked by my great grandfather to return to Connecticut to manage the family dairy farm—which he did… I think, probably, to his regret, but that’s beside the point. So he managed the dairy farm for a while, and worked in New York City, both in a hat factory and as a furrier. As his fame grew as a writer, he ultimately ceased factory work. He contracted TB and died around 1944, when I was about three. I have just a couple of recollections of him.

RH: So where was Mac born? I’ve heard both New York City and the Bronx.

RABOY: The Bronx is one of the five boroughs that make up New York City. Whether or not he was born in the Bronx, I honestly don’t know. He was born in New York City, somewhere.

IF YOURH: I heard ENJOYED that Mac THISwas a graduatePREVIEW, of CLICK THE LINK THE STORY BEHIND DeWitt ClintonBELOW High TOSchool ORDER in the Bronx. THIS Yet, BOOK! when a friend of mine tried THE ABOVE PAINTING to locate a picture of him in the high school yearbook records there, he couldn’t Mac Raboy created two paintings while work- ing for Fawcett Publications during the 1940s. be found. One was a gouche painting portrait of Captain MAC RABOY: Marvel Jr. The painting was an unknown piece RABOYMASTER: The only thing OFI can tell you is my understanding that he graduated of art until it showed up on eBay in 2005. It from DeWitt Clinton. We would drive by it when we drove into the city to was being sold by a collector who had bought it from comic art dealer Joe Parente years earlier, visitTHE his mother, COMICS who was my grandmother. I can’t account for why there is no after it had been consigned by Mac’s wife Lulu, Beginningyearbook with his picture.WPA etchings Knowing during the my 1930s, father as I do, I’m not surprised. along with a Green Lama page of original art. Mac Raboy struggled to survive the Great Depression and On the next page is the handwritten note from eventually found his way into the comic book sweatshops Mrs. Raboy that accompanied the piece when of America.RH :In Yes, that worldfrom of whatfour-color I’ve panels, learned he perfected so far, he was a little camera shy. consigned to Parente. his art style on such creations as Dr. Voodoo, Zoro, The MysteryRABOY Man, Bulletman,: [Laughs Spy Smasher,] That’s Green being Lama charitable. and My dad also went to the As stated in her letter, Lulu Raboy identified his crowning achievement, Captain Marvel Jr. this original painting being created for the cover RaboySchool went on and to illustrate the Pratt the Flash Institute. Gordon Sunday of the first Captain Marvel Jr. comic book. Since newspaper strip, and left behind a legacy of meticulous the art was not used for any Fawcett cover, oth- perfection.RH Through: Both extensiveare highly research respected and interviews institutions for artists. er theories have been put forth over the years, with son David Raboy, and assistants who worked with including one that the painting might have been the artist during the Golden Age of Comics, author Roger Hill brings Mac Raboy, the man and the intended as a photo-premium to be given away artist, intoRABOY focus for: I’mhistorians not toaware savor and that enjoy. he This graduated full-color hardcover or received includes never-before-seenany kind of degree from through the Captain Marvel Fan Club or other photos,either a wealth ofof rarethem, and unpublishedbut I suspect artwork, not. and the first definitive biography of a true Master of the Comics! Fawcett promotions. After being purchased (160-page FULL-COLOR HARDCOVER) $39.95 Continued on next page ISBN: 978-1-60549-090-8 • (Digital Edition) $11.95 • Diamond Order Code: APR192022 DAVIDhttp://twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=95_93&products_id=1433 RABOY: THE SON OF MAC RABOY SPEAKS 139