But, we don't really care about any of that today - just the beginning.
For the first seven and a half issues, the format was Funny Animal comics. Perhaps most significantly, Cosmo Cat began his first adventures in All Top, starting in the first issue.
Those early issues of All Top featured - we think - four tales drawn by Ellis Chambers, including the aforementioned Cosmo Cat story - though that was is merely presumed, not confirmed.
The first two stories ran previously on the main blog. I suspect we'll copy more over time so as to collect it all here.
All Top Comics #1 - Cosmo Cat / The Lollipop Fiend:
For this second tale, Ellis Chambers is the 'best guess' by historians on who drew the tale. When some are trying to deduce the artist, they note that the bottom of panel two contains what appears to be an box with artist's initials semi-obscured by white-out. While some say it looks like an E.L., they also note that there was nobody with those initials known to be active in the field at the time.
However, that EL could just as easily be a more completely hidden EC, and Chambers was known to draw a box around his initials at times. (He even signed with just an empty box on occasion, but that's not what we're looking at here.)
All Top Comics #3 - Cosmo Cat / The Fourth Dimension:
These next two tales he signed, so there's little doubt to the artist. There are others that he may have drawn during the early run of All Top, but we're sticking with just the four that are presumed to be his work. At least, until convincing arguments are made for other stories.
All Top Comics #5 - Señor Tamale / What Magical Magic!:
All Top Comics #6 - Cosmo Cat / Real Heavy Artillery:
With issue number 8, the format switched to Jungle Comics and Matt Baker was the new look of the book. The animals weren't so funny any more...
page art by Ellis Holly Chambers for All Top Comics #s 1, 3, 5, & 6 (1946, 1947)
A pill that gives you magical powers, huh? Looks like Cosmo Cat's not the only funny animal around taking pills for "abilities". How would a pill give you supernatural powers? Maybe it's all in Senor Tamale's head...
ReplyDeleteWell, the answer to that one is actually pretty easy -
ReplyDeleteIt's Magic!
What else could give you magic powers?
(Not make you think you've got magic powers - that's a much bigger list)
I wonder if Chambers ever did comics that the publishers didn't accept. Seeing how he seemed to really be into drawing as long as he was on the drugs I wouldn't be surprised if some of those various comics with original characters that never appeared again like "Bulgy Bear" and all of Daffy Tunes were perhaps lingering in Chambers drawers or whatever for a while before he found a publisher for them. It'd be really interesting particularly for Cosmo Cat as it's the possibility a character who already appeared in some pretty shocking adventures having unpublished ones even weirder. I already suspect he maybe toned himself down for the editors particularly after the comic panic so seeing free time stuff could maybe explains things like the Hi Ho Comics #1 style never being used again. Great finds and I really love the Senor Tamale one, some fantastic and fun drawings.
ReplyDeleteAnd we both know Chambers seemed to like putting inside drug jokes in his comics. And yeah there are hallucinogenic substances people take and then think they can alter reality with their minds...