WelcometothefirstissueofScriptGraphicstobeproducedinthe2012NewYear!We’vehadagreatendtothelastyearwithTeamSGdoingagreatjobonourlineofcolorbooks,readyforreleasethissummer.ToallthecreatorswhohaveputintimeandeffortIcanonlysayBRAVO!Thisisagreatrimetobeacreatorandwithallthethingswe’retakingonIfiguredtostartofftheyearwithatributeissuetotheunsungblackcharactersandcreatorsofyesteryear. WhenIfirstdecidedtotakeonthis‘BlackinComics’tributeissuecover,Ifeltatwingeofangstatdoingit.ThehistoryofBlacksincomicshasn’talwaysbeenkind,norfair.We’vecomealongwaybutsometimeswhenIreadthebooksoftoday,whereBlacksarevastlyunder-representedortreatedasifthey’reputinasnothingmorethananafterthought,I’mfilledwithanotsosmallamountofanger. Itisn’tasifthey’rearen’talotofcharactersofcolorincomicbooks,it’sjustthattheydon’tcountformuch.Ofthetwomajorcom-paniestodayandthemanyindependentsonthestands,onlyonebookcomestomindwhenyouthinkofaBlackheadliningabook:‘TheBlackPanther’.(Itwasagoodbooktoo,butI’mnotgoingtowaxpoeticaboutit.They’vealreadytakenhimoutofhishomelandandexiledhimtoAmerica,makinghimapoormansDaredevil.) D.C.recentlydidaBlackLightningsixissuerunbutthey’veneverhadatruecommitmenttotheirBlackcharacters.Tyroc,oftheLegionofSuperheroes,hashadhiswholeworldvanishedfromtheD.C.continuity.Don’tfeelbadaboutthatthough,hewastheonlyLegionnaireintroducedpriorto1989thatneverappearedduringPaulLevitz’15-yearrunontheLegion(eventhedeceasedFerroLad,Invis-ibleKid,andChemicalKingappearedinflashbackstories). Additionally,D.C.whoownstheentireMilestoneComicsUniverse,andwassupposedtobere-connectingittotheD.C.U.(andhadaprettygoodstoryruninthepagesofJusticeLeagueofAmericawhichestablishedthattheywerenowpartoftheD.C.U.)havenowdecidedtonotdothem.Insteadthey’llappearsporadicallyin‘acouplestorieshereandthere’.Alreadythey’veputHardwarein‘BraveandBold’andprettymuchdevaluedhisarmorandmadethecharacterajerk.ButI’mgettingaheadofmyselfhere.Aswithallthingsthereneedstobeahistoricalperspectivetosortitallout:

CREATIVE

THE DARK AGES! Initially,BlacksweresodevaluedinAmericansocietythatwhitemenwerehiredtomimicBlacksinminstrelshows,paintingtheirfacesblackwithcharcoalandsinginginspiritualstylewhichwasbothhom-ageandmockingatthesametime,dependingwhowasdoingtheshow.ThatimagerynaturallycarriedovertovisualdepictionsofAmericanBlackswho,moreoftenthannot,wereportrayedasbeing‘savages’orofsavagenature.ItreachedahorrifyingpeakinTexAvery’sMGMcartoon,Half-PintPygmy,whichwashorriblymarredbyitsmis-useofablackcharacter. OvertimetheportrayalsstoppedbeingeffectiveasintellectualBlackAmericansbegantotakestandsandchallengetheimagery.Intel-ligentwhitessawthroughtheracismandsoftenedtheirpositions.Thiscouldonlyhappenwhenhumanbeingsseeotherhumanbeingsashu-manbeings.Unfortunately,peerpressurebeingwhatITis,mostwhiteAmericans,eventheonesthatsympathizedwiththeBlacksofthattime,couldn’tfightthestatusquo,buttheycouldtemperit.Thisledto:

THE BLACKS AS CHILDREN PHASE! Blackkids,stilldrawnintheraciststylebutwhowerefarmoreintelligentthantheir‘savage’forerunners,begantopopulatethecreativeculture.I’dliketopointoutherethatevenWillEisner’s‘EbonyWhite’wasaproductofthisthinking.Ebony,thecharacter,wascoolenoughtodriveacarandassistTheSpirit,oftensavinghisbaconsotospeak,butstillneverevolvedbeyondthevisualstereo-typeofearlierdepictionsofBlacksexcepttobemadefaryoungerandthereforemorereaderfriendlyandlessthreatening. FromtheStanleyStoriesBlog*: Li’lEight-Ballwasacreationof

thelate1930’s.HefirstappearedintheWalterLantzCartuneA-HauntingWeWillGo,directedbyex-DisneynutjobBurtGillettandfeaturinguncreditedvocalsbyMelBlanc.

ThiscartooncanbeseenonUniversal’ssecondWoodyWoodpecker

andFriendsDVDcollection.Stereotypesaside,it’sacharming,ratherwild-spiritedcartoon.

*(c)2008,2009byFrankM.Young.http://stanleystories.blogspot.com/2009/09/is-this-stanleys-work-last-of-lil-eight.html

Thisisnotcharmingtothosewhohadtolivewiththatdepiction.Fortunately,therewereBlackswhofiguredthatofferinganopposingpointofviewwasabetterwaytogothantorailagainstthestatusquo. All-NegroComicswas

America’sfirst-evercomicbook,written,illustratedandpublishedentirelybyAfrican-Americans,aimedprimarilyatAfricanAmericanreaders.

ItcarriesacoverdateofJune1947.Noinformationaboutthepressrunordistributionremains,butitisbelievedthatthecomic

wasdistributedoutsideofthePhiladelphiaarea. Asecondissuewasplannedandtheartcompleted,butwhenOr-rinwasreadytopublishithefoundthathissourcefornewsprintwouldnolongerselltohim,norwouldanyoftheothervendorshecontacted. Gettingabooktopublicationisnotaneasyfeatinanyageandevenmoreso‘backthen’,particularlyifyou’reBlack.Still,thatissuecontainedadetectivestory,anadventureaboutaAfricanherointhe‘Tarzan’tradition,asex-comedyabouttwoopportunistictrampsandafairytaleforlittlechildrenwhichshowshowBlacksviewed‘charming’Blackcharactersasopposedtohowtheywerebeingportrayed:

There’smuchmorethatIwouldliketoelaborateonaboutthiseraofAmericancomicsbutI’llleavethatforanothertimeandanotherformat.ThisperiodissomewhatpainfulformanyBlackcomiccreatorswho

wouldratheroperateasifitneverhappened.I’dliketothinkthosewhowentbeforeuspavedthewayforustocreatebeyondthenegativestereotypesandfoundabitofdignityinspiteofitall. Tobefair,somewhitepublisherswerecultivatingproductsfortheBlackmarketfeaturingBlackcharacterstoo.Parent’sMagazinepublishedtwoissuesofNegroHeroes,datedSpring1947andSummer1948,featuringreprintsfromtheirCallingAllGirls,RealHeroesandTrueComics.FawcettpublishedthreeissuesofNegroRomance,thesecondissuebeingreprintedbyCharltonasNegroRomancesnumberfour,datedJunethroughOctober1950andMay1955respectivelyaswellasaseriesofsportsherocomicssometimeinthe1950’sthatincludedshortrunsofbooksstarringJackieRobinsonandJoeLewis. TherewasalsoTreasureChestComicswhichfeaturedstoriesaboutothersportsstarslikeJesseOwens,andithastheaddeddistinc-tionofbeingthefirsttofeatureaBlackMannotonlyrunningfor,butwinningthePresidency!Thiswasbackinthemid1950’s.

BLACKS IN COMICS GO COMPLETELY INVISIBLE! ForthemostpartBlacksaren’tseenincomicsshortlyafterthisperiod.Theydon’texistinbackgrounds,orasprotagonistsorloversoranything(exceptfortheoccasionalhistoricaloroddsportsstoryfeaturingBlackfiguresfromhistoryorsports).Whatwouldbenext?

BLACKS RETURN TO COMICS! MarvelComics’1950’spredecessor,AtlasComics,publishedtheAfricantribal-chief“Waku,PrinceoftheBantu”,intheanthologystyled‘JungleTales’.Thispre-datestheBlackPantherbyatleast10years. Early1960andthegrowingcivilrightsunrestinthecountryleadsthecomicsindustrytodiscover-ingawholenewmarketdemographic.JackKirby

createsandpencilsaregalandtech-nologicallysavvynationofBlackAfricansknownasWakandan’sledbytheenigmaticBlackPanther.StanLeepensthetalewhichisablyinkedbythesmoothJoeSinnotandhistoryismade.Thisisthefirsttimethere’sbeenaBlackleadchar-acterinamajorcomicbookfromamajorcompanyevenifit’snothisownbook. BothoftheseheroeswereAfricanandsonot

trulyAmericans.Comicbooks’firstknownAfrican-Americansuperhe-ro,Marvel’sFalcon,wasintroducedin1969togreatfanfareinCaptainAmerica,startingwithside-kickstatuswhichhasn’tchangedeventoday.

Itwasn’tuntil1972,withMarvel’sLukeCage,HeroforHirethataBlackcharactergottohavehisveryownbookinwhichhewastheheadlinerandfeaturedcharacter.Noside-kickstatusforthismeanmotherfromthestreetswhotooknogufffromstreetthugsorDr.Doom.

D.C.Comics,notwantingtobeoutdonechosetocreatetheirownBlackcharacterwithBlackLightning.Alacklustercharacter,atbest,whoseinventionwastrulyseenasanattempttocashinonthegrowingBlackmarketanddemographic. Inupcomingyearsboth

MarvelandD.C.wouldintroducemanyotherethniccharactersbutnonewouldcom-mandanongoingseriesoutsideofTheBlackPan-ther.Butthere’sstillsomethingamiss...

NoneofthesehavetherealdistinctionofbeingtheFIRSTcomicbooktofeatureaBlackcharac-terortohaveoneheadlinehisowntitlebyamajorpublisher.Dellwasabookpublisher,whichputitoutsideofthegeneralcomicpublishingarena,except

theydidpublishcomicbooksforatime. “Lobo”wascreatedbywriterD.J.ArnesonandartistTonyTallarico,itchronicledtheOldWestadventuresofawealthy,unnamedBlackgunslingercalled“Lobo”.Hewouldleavethecallingcardofagoldcoinimprintedwiththeimagesofawolfandtheletter“L”onthe

foreheadsofcriminalshevanquished. Twobookswerepublishedbutwhenthefirst

issuegottoretailerstheyrefusedtosellthem,sothesecondissuewasneversentout.

Thisbriefarticleonlyscratchesthesurfaceofthe

disparitybetweenandlackofknowledgeaboutwhatittakestowriteagoodstoryaboutBlackcharacters.I’lltacklethatinanupcomingarticle. DG

Welcome to the firstinstallmentoftheD Spotproducedinthe2012NewYear!Ididn’tknowiftherewouldbemorespaceforanadditionalarticleforthisfirstissuetobeproducedin2012,butIfiguredwhatthehey.Thisarticleiscalled:

The Evolution of a Cover. Thecovershouldcarryanumberof

firsts,sofirsttherewouldbethe‘hidden’coverwhichIthoughtshouldbeobscurebecausemostfansofcomicsknownothingaboutitoritssignificanceintheannalsofcomicpublish-ing.Itwasthefirstbook,byamajorpublisher,tofeatureaBlackcharacterintheleadrole.ThatbookisLobo. ThenextfirstwouldbetheoverallseriesofcoversthatharkenusbacktothefirststhatpopulatedthecomicmarketasthisissuescoverpayshomagetotheBlackcharactersofcom-ics.ThisissueisduetohitthemailboxesduringBlackHistorymonth,afterall. ThereweremanymorethatIwantedtoputinbutIhadtheconstraintsofthecoversizetoconsider.Morebookswouldhavemeanttheywouldhavebeenfartohardtosee.Ialsowant-edtohaveitframedbywhiteassortofapunonhowthosebooksoperatedinthemarketplace. Next,Imarriedalltheelementstogetherandeverythingfitandwasreadable.Place-mentofsomeissuesweredoneinawaysotheywouldn’tbeblockedbythetypeI’dbeplacing,whichIknewwouldhidesomeofthem.Keyhistoricbooksshouldbeseenthroughthefore-groundimagethatIwantedtogracethecoverasahomageofsorts. NowIwasreadytoattemptamostinter-estingvisualconceptthatspokedirectlytotheheartofwhereandwhyBlackcomicshavesuchahardtimemakingaplaceforthemselvesintheAmericancomiclandscape.Images,likewords,aresometimesusedtohurtanddegradeevenif

The D Spot

theintentionwasn’ttrulybasedonhatred,butinstead,ignorance. NowcametheimageIfeared,andreviled,butunderstoodalltoowell.Itmighthavebeenasomewhatlikeablecharacterifthestereotypewhichledtoit’screationhadn’tbeensoblatantlyracistindesign. TheactualstoriesofthecharacterhadabitoftruthtothemandhewasastatementaboutthesubwaysystemandIreallywishthecreatorshadwentinaslightlydifferentvisualdirection. Still,timesbeingwhattheywere,Imarvelattherebeinganysensitivitybeingshownatall.TakingthemostbenignimageIcouldfind,Ire-versedittowhite,addedadropshadowandwireframedittoputitabovethecompositegraphicI’dalreadydone. Thiswouldbetoshowwherewecamefrom,notfromaBlackperspective,butfromanindustrythatwantedtodosomethingcon-sideredgoodbutwashamperedbytheprevail-ingracialattitudesofthetimes.Itwouldbeeasy,quiteeasy,tojustdismisstheartisansofthetimesfornotrailingagainstthesystemandfightingtobehonestandtruthful,buttheyhadfamiliestofeedandsometimespayingbillsaremoreimportantthantakingapoliticalstandthatwouldhavewithoutadoubtputthemandtheirfamilyinthestreet. Anyway,thelastelementswerethelet-tering.BlackCharactersinAmericanComicswouldbeimbeddedinthefabricofthecomicbooksasmuchasLil8Ballwouldbeaheadofthatsameselffabric.AlltheotherletteringconcerningSG(ScriptGraphics),aswellasthelogo,wasmademetalicto‘pop’itfromtheimagerytomakeitinstantlyreadable. Sothereyouhaveit.Ahomagetowhatcamebefore,atestamenttowhat’souttherenow,andanodtowhat’sbeenglossedoverandvirtuallyunknowntothepublicatlarge.Thisismytributetowhatwas,whatcouldhavebeen,whatis;andIawaitwhatisyetstilltocome... DG