FIRST GULLIVER GUINEA-PIG STORY BY GORDON HUTCHINGS – PART TWO

Here’s the second part of Gulliver-Guinea-Pig and the Rainbow Folk - the first Gulliver story by Gordon Hutchings, two double pagers from PLAYHOUR cover-dated 11 and 18 February, 1961. 

Apart from being superbly drawn, the story also features one of my favourite themes when the plot is based on characters’ power to control the colours. I have a few more examples of that in my collection. The Wizard’s Black Magic by Nadir Quinto from the back pages of TREASURE in 1964 is another brilliant example that immediately comes to mind, and I will show it on my blog sometime soon…

Click to enlarge and enjoy!

 

Click on the POWER PACK banner in the right-hand column and get your copy of the POWER PACK OF KEN REID - the deluxe two-volume set of Ken’s strips in WHAM!, SMASH! and POW! comics of the ‘60s.

FIRST GULLIVER GUINEA-PIG STORY BY GORDON HUTCHINGS

It's been a while since I last showed something of Playhour’s Gulliver Guinea-Pig. 

I recently received an email from a reader who is the proud owner of the original artwork for the first Gulliver story by Gordon Hutchings after he took over from Philip Mendoza who was in charge of the strip since it began in May 1958. 

Hutching’s first story, called Gulliver Guinea-Pig and the Rainbow Folk, ran in the 4 consecutive issues of Playhour in January and February 1961, and was so nicely drawn that I decided to show it in full. Here are the first 4 pages, the rest will follow soon. Click to enlarge and enjoy!

Click on the POWER PACK banner in the right-hand column and get your copy of the POWER PACK OF KEN REID - the deluxe two-volume set of Ken’s strips in WHAM!, SMASH! and POW! comics of the ‘60s.

SWEENY TODDLER AS GUEST STAR IN WHIZZER AND CHIPS IN 1973 and 1974

Stephen Archer who is a regular reader of this blog sent me a list of characters from other IPC comic that appeared in the ‘Guest Star’ feature in WHIZZER AND CHIPS in 1972 - 1974. 

As it turns out, Sweeny Toddler, then still a SHIVER & SHAKE star, popped in as many as four times - once in 1973 and three times in 1974! 

I have three of those issues, and I am happy to share the pages here. I’d be curious to see the episode which appeared in WHIZZER AND CHIPS cover-dated the 1st of June, 1974 – the only issue of the four that I don’t have.

For some reason I doubt if the episodes will be included in the forthcoming Sweeny Toddler album by Rebellion... 

I believe the first two were drawn by Tom Paterson, imitating Leo Baxendale’s and Stan McMurtry’s styles, while the one at the bottom is by the ever-excellent Frank McDiarmid. 

Apologies for the image quality – my comics are in bound volumes and are impossible to scan so I photographed them with my phone…

Enjoy!

SERIALISED FACEACHE STORIES – PART TEN: POLTERGEIST

The next serialised Faceache story by Ken Reid appeared in two consecutive issues of BUSTER cover-dated May 19th and 26th, 1979, and it went like this:

Mr. Snipe is terrified of the Belmonte Beastie, the famous invisible spook, which haunts the school’s stock room, and Faceache volunteers to get rid of it. 

The spook is impressed with Faceache’s ability to scrunge. Flattered, Faceache nevertheless tells him to scat so that the lad can claim his month off homework. The ghost vanishes and Faceache reports to Mr. Snipe that the little horror has departed from the school forever. But somewhere in the limbo the Belmonte Beastie meets his fellow-spooks, and invites them back to Belmonte school to see a genius kid who could teach them all a few tricks…

The Belmonte Beastie returns to school with some of his pals: 

Thinking that it’s now safe, Mr. Snipe enters the stock room and is pelted by invisible ghosts. Upon hearing the racket, Faceache rushes to the stock room, thinking that the spook has returned and he’ll have to scrunge again to scare it off. Mr. Snipe takes the scrunged Faceache for the spook that has become visible, and assaults him with a stick, threatening exorcism:

Seeing what scrunging may lead to, the ghosts leave the school stock room for good, not wanting any part of it...

Characters are © Rebellion Publishing Ltd

Click on the POWER PACK banner in the right-hand column and get your copy of the POWER PACK OF KEN REID - the deluxe two-volume set of Ken’s strips in WHAM!, SMASH! and POW! comics of the ‘60s.