Professor Crackpot by Protheroe...

Another of those Golden Age British nightmare pages to share.

Firstly, thanks to smoky1980 for scanning/forwarding this and its from a batch of loose pages marked "Swan 1948/49".

Even had this not been signed the art style is a dead give-away.  This is the work of Glyn Protheroe who was born in Swansea, Wales, on the 3rd July, 1906.  Sadly, I can find no record of when he died. After leaving school, Protheroe went on to study art under Walter Fuller.  

In the 1920s he moved to London and became a professional cartoonist and press artist.  At that time he had a studio in  Shaftesbury Avenue but also worked from Southampton Row. His work appeared in Sports Post, The Journal, Sporting News and The Leader -all well known national publications.

His comics work took off in the 1940s when Soloway, Amex and Gerald Swan used his work.  His first work for Swan appeared in 1942 and titles he contributed to included War Comics, Cute Fun, Topicaol Funnies, Slick Fun, Thrill Comics and New Funnies.  Work was also contributed to a number of albums from Swan -Albums were collections of reprint strips with more pages than weekly comics -more like the yearly annuals but soft covered not hard cover.

For Soloway, starting in 1943, he contributed to Comic Capers, All Star and Comic Adventures.

For Amex, Protheroe contributed to Merry Midget, Midget Comics, Bantam Comics these were all from 1943.

The sets (strips) that Protheroe provided were usually a collection of jokes strung together in a "talking heads" format.  According to Alan Clark, from whom most of the data is culled: "His style was instantly recognisable; his characters looked like clowns...a distinctive 'morose' quality." 

And the artist signed himself as either "Glynne" or "Protheroes".

The below Professor Crackpot strip is a typical nightmare and the orange ink might have looked bright and fun to war time kids but....oy.

I had to remove the colour and alter brightness and contrast four times to make it a mere black and white page. 

So, here is your example of Glyn Protheroe at work!

An extra treat for you all!

William A. Ward's Sheriff Fox

William A. Ward, creator of The Bat (for Gerald Swan) and many others. A 1948(?) strip of Sheriff Fox!

No "Point Scoring" Allowed.

In the old days you had the fan press that used to have LOCs -Letters of Comment".  There were articles by fans on characters and or specific comic titles or artists. You would get the odd "nasty" letter but once the moron responsible realised he would be getting no publicity he stopped.

The advent of the internet has put pay to that.

Trollers and flamers abound not just attacking via peoples' personal blogs but on "comic forums" (where for the most part they seem to be allowed to write whatever they want and get away with it -the moderator/owner having a spine of jelly).

I have been the victim of name calling, lies, slurs on my reputation and skills and knowledge.  I have had this every week, sometimes as many as ten mails a week.  Now I note ISP numbers and report them. They seem to think that they and their snide little pals can hide behind anonimity. That shows how dumb they are.  Even posting from cyber cafes or, of all places, public library computers, you leave a signature.

Those people, they know who they are, have mental health problems. It is as simple as that.  They contribute nothing.

But the type I really do hate are those who set themselves up as "comic experts" and who try, continuously, to demean other comickers.  They waste your time as you try to be helpful and then do not reply via email, where they set you queries, giving you all the information they asked for, but on publiv comments on blogs.

WHY would someone ask for information on characters and then tell you they have the information already having wasted hours of your time?

These are not true comickers. Not fans. They are trying to score points against you -"Nyah-nyah -HE doesn't have the information I asked for but I do!"

Sadly, these people get onto internet You Tube communities where it is easy to set up fake email names. Or they join your groups under THREE different names so if you kick them off once for misbehaving they are still there with two more chances.

All we can do as an online comic community is cold shoulder these people. Ignore them.

Comics are fun and some of us enjoy them!

Oh the price of comics.....

Over the weekend I met up with two fellows who I have mentioned before.  They valuate items for auction houses –no, don’t ask as I can’t say but the big ones.  They had been travelling around the UK observing auctions and talking to collectors. I was asked if I was free to chat “because you know more about these rare and obscure British comics of the 1930s-1950s”…After flattery like that what could I say?

Here is the conclusion they made after a three week trip –D.C. Thomson titles such as Beano and Dandy or certain Amalgamated Press (AP)  titles of the 1930s to early 1950s: VERY much sought after.

So I asked what sort of price they were estimating –apparently the first issue of Beano or Dandy and there was no fixed financial price.  “Idiots will pay ridiculous prices and for a first issue of either of those…who knows!” 

It seems that not even an Eagle first issue would command the price of a first Beano or Dandy…yeah, I found that surprising.

Apparently, no AP title commanded anything similar.  I rattled off a few titles –no. Nothing.  What??  I asked what sort of price various titles might get.  A first issue of Battle Weekly…£2-£4…..Action Weekly….£6.00 because of “notoriety”  and one of the men had privately auctioned off a full (first to last issue) run of Radio Fun for £100 –his colleague laughed at this and pointed out that auction houses had refused to sell that particular run because there “was no interest”.

Most weekly UK comics from the 1930s-1980s were valued at between £1 to £4 (“loony price”) but the Beano and Dandy’s could go as far as £5-£6 each because of “potty collectors”. 

I pointed out ebay prices and got two very loud howls of derision: “If you pay more than £4 for any UK weekly you are absolutely mad –and no one sane pays the fixed prices asked for on ebay!”  It was pointed out that one of my 1980s zines had sold on ebay in May for £25 –I can’t even sell these old books at their original price but it was called “rare” and “highly sought after”….what *******!

So we came to why I was contacted –comics from Swann, Fouldes, Comic Art Productions and so on. I was asked what sort of prices I had heard these comics going for?  I pointed out that finding them for sale tended to be rare  and I thought I was now going to be told they were worth a fortune.

I was kidding myself.

Both had copies of Gifford’s 1980s UK comics guide which included price estimates if you wanted to buy those books now.  Prepare for a major shock –apparently my jaw dropped and I looked “quite pale”!

It seems there was really no increased value to the books since Gifford wrote the guide. I pointed out the rarity of certain titles and suggested they must be more valuable now?

No.

“We are not talking American Golden Age comic titles here –we are talking British, mass and very cheaply produced comics with quite poor printing and paper a tramp would not put in his boot”  To which I tried to counter with various points. Even as I made those points I could see the problems.

No one has a vested interest in obscure characters.  Or as one of the men put it: “Often badly drawn and one dimensional characters” that, it seems, do not compare in any way to the glories of Eggo, Desperate Dan, Lord Snooty, etc..  “Most auction houses will not even consider selling single issues or even collections because their commissions are usually more than the comics make” –the usual commission being around 17% I was told.

I was told of an old tea chest (which are big) that was full of Swan comics –all wrapped in grease proof bags (nostalgia there!).  Approximately 100 comics plus a few from other publishers.  The owner had died and the house contents were sold but not the box of comics that were, apparently, advertised online but got no interest. Rather than cart the box to storage it was dumped at the back of the auction room by the bins.

DUMPED BY THE BINS??!!!

Another set of 1940s comics had been used by one auction house to wrap fragile purchases to send to people in the US and Europe.

I pointed out here, VERY quickly, that if they put the word around I would certainly buy any boxes or comics that were of “no real interest or value” but was told for single issues it was doubtful anyone would contact me –postage would probably cost more than the comic itself.  Collections –“It just isn’t worth the auction house’s time” BUT they did promise to pass on my details.

Of course, this lack of interest might explain why group membership numbers (British Comic Book Archives) have not increased and why no one seems that…interested.

This was all depressing.

So, you see high prices for any books on ebay…remember anything over £4.00 is a “rip-off”

Well, I’ll still look out for Krakos The Egyptian or The Bat…and I’ll still accept scans of books. I like them any way!!

OVER 400 PAGES OF BRITISH GOLDEN AGE TREASURES!!

Combining volumes 1-6 of the BT Golden Age British Comics Collections (minus adverts) this is the ultimate for any Golden Age collector or historian or just plain comic lover.  

Features Ace Hart, TNT Tom, Electrogirl, Wonderman, The Phantom Raider, Captain Comet, Acro Maid, Phantom Maid, Dene Vernon,The Iron Boy, The Boy Fish,Professor Atom and MANY others!



http://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper-scharf/the-ultimate-british-comics-gold-collection/paperback/product-20994399.html

Terry Hooper-Scharf: The Ultimate Game and The Return Of The Gods

There is a third edition of the book now with new art and text feature totalling 331 pages!
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Frank Barrell talks to Terry Hooper-Scharf  about The Ultimate Game, The Cosmic Fulcrum and The Return Of The Gods!

I’ve interviewed Terry a couple times before –the last time about his resurrection of an old UK Golden Age character in The Bat Triumphant.  Not easy to interview someone who doesn’t like interviews and has rarely taken part in one in 30 years but here goes nothing!

Frank: Now I know you are a major fan of the obscure UK Golden Age heroes and you’ve incorporated many into your “Black Tower Universe” since 1984 and you have also published a book -400 plus pages?- of many of these old obscure strips, both humour and action. So, Return, is the biggest all original work book you’ve published to date?

Terry: Yes, biggest comic book or “graphic novel” if you prefer. I’ve published about five (?) bulky prose books –Some Things Strange & Sinister, Some More Things Strange & Sinister, Pursuing The Strange & Weird, The Red Paper and, of course, the best of 25 plus years of interviews in…The Hooper Interviews.

Normally, I’ve published A4 comic albums of between 15-120 pages.  Return, however, is the first graphic novel.

Frank: How many pages?

Terry: It’s 318 pages.

Frank: I may have gotten ahead of myself a bit here –I was reading Paul H. Birch’s Q&A with you on SpeechBalloon and got diverted –

http://blogs.birminghammail.co.uk/speechballoon/2013/02/return-of-the-gods-and-a-chat.html

Now, I know you’ve read comics since you were about six or seven years old and your influences were outlined in a full interview by Phil Latter (yeah, give a Canadian the opportunity to interview you but not your mates!)

http://www.comicbitsonline.com/2011/06/27/the-terry-hooper-interview-by-phil-latter/

and you’ve expanded on this background with postings on Manhwa, Manhua and Manga as well as European (particularly German) comics on CBO….

Terry: This is going to be a very long interview, isn’t it?

Frank: I’ll get there in a minute just hang about.

Terry: Then hurry up!!!!


below:art from the original The Ultimate Game. Pencils T. Hooper/Inks B. R. Dilworth.
Frank: Okay, we’ll get back to Golden Age stuff in a while. As you are so impatient maybe you can tell us just how Return started?

Terry: In a way I think it goes back to when I was a nipper, drawing comic strips in old receipt books my gran, Rose, used to get me from work (she worked at Pople’s Popular Pies in Mina Road, St. Werburgh’s, and old blank receipt books were thrown away but she found it a very “economic” way to stem my need for paper to draw on)—

Frank: And you don’t have any of those books any more, do you?

Terry: Sadly, no. My parents kept moving about and I lost so much stuff but only managed to keep the odd cherished comic.

Any old way, I used to draw UK characters such as Billy The Cat, Billy The Whizz and The Spider –even The Phantom Viking—alongside US comic characters like Thor, Hulk, Captain America, Batman and so on. Actually, as I’m saying this I suddenly realise that Return is a sort of expansion of those old books. That is weird. I never really thought about it until now.


below: More of the original UG -credits as before!
Frank: To save any legal threats we need to make sure that its clear you have not used any of those characters in Return!

Terry: Absolutely not. I’m not insane!

Frank: So you started drawing these strips in old receipt books and so on and you never lost interest in comics as you grew up?


Below: a colour “swatch” page for the colourist.

Terry: No. Not at all. I never had a terrible childhood –my grandparents, Rose and Bill, mainly raised me and though we were poor Bill did try to keep me supplied with a weekly comic or a shilling (5p today!) pocket money so comics and plasticine were always with me.  And when I eventually went to Greenway Secondary Modern Boys School in Southmead, Bristol, I found a few people interested in comics and later on taught a few younger lads to draw comics. School was not a good time for me so drawing and comics were a distraction.


Frank: Your original plan was to get into publishing and publish comics as a business or work as a comic editor, right?

Terry: Yes. All my contact was mainly with editors or publishers and I soon learned that it was a real closed shop. But that’s a very, very long story!!

Frank: Alright, zooming ahead. You were going to various comic companies in the mid 1980s and trying to sell comic title or strip series ideas.  It was at this point that the germ of what was going to become Return started: can you tell us about that?

Terry: Well, in a way it began (excluding those old receipt book cross-overs) with Fleetway in the 1980s. I had met Steve McManus and Dave Hunt and others at the editorial level but my real insight into things came through Managing Editor Gil Page –when he later retired (around 2000) he had been with the company since 1957 and had been there from Amalgamated Press, IPC, Fleetway, Maxwell PP and then Egmont.

I learnt things such as the fact that, as Gil put it in a letter: “everyone was excited about this big American comic writer who had created the Spider for us” –yes, Jerry Siegel created The Spider. And talk of the old characters they still had and never used led to me “kinda” talking Gil into letting me put together a 10 page preview titled “The Ultimate Game”.  I say “kinda” because no one could persuade him to do what he did not want to –he was affectionately known as “the UK Stan Lee” and I still hold him in great respect.

However, though the end result –The Ultimate Game– was liked and copies made and passed around all over Fleetway –I went to see Steve McManus about a 2000 AD related idea and he took the pages out of a drawer and said “You’re the guy behind this, aren’t you?”  Ah, the recognition at last!  Anyway, “someone” put a spoke in the works. Sheer malice but they bi-passed the editors and contacted upper management. From then on the old characters were really “a thing of the past” and later incarnations never treated them properly –though I love Shane Oakley and George Freeman’s work on Albion.
By total accident, I met a fella who was in management at Maxwell Pergamon Publishing and he blurted out -by accident?- that Robert Maxwell was buying out Fleetway and that Maxwell really wanted to publish successful comics in the UK. I have no idea what was going on behind the scenes but apparently Rupert Murdoch had a newspaper empire and had said at some point his company was going to publish comics -red flag to Maxwell!  I met the man once, very enthusiastic. I counted my fingers afterwards.


It took a while but then his people decided The Ultimate Game was going to be a full colour, 32 pager,  old style weekly –a bit like Battleor the new Eagle but full colour. At this point I was very excited but a warning voice always tells me to not get carried away.  Everything was ready…then Maxwell died and I have no idea what was going on.

Eventually, I was writing for Egmont, mainly on Revolver and then someone found the old Ultimate Game project. I think they were trying to impress their bosses with ideas which should have warned me!  I spent a lot of time up-dating it. Then the editor involved left, apparently on not very good terms with Egmont, and the project died again.

Marvel UK had shown an interest but wanted all rights so I said no. It would have been nice money but giving up rights to all the characters? No.

I ought to point out that after Fleetway and Egmont and Maxwell I had incorporated my own characters, some that I had created in the 1970s, into the story as I could not use the old Fleetway characters.
When I re-launched Black Tower Adventure in…2009  I needed a meaty main feature. The Ultimate Game had been adapted and the title changed to The Cosmic Fulcrum for Marvel UK and that title was used when it finally appeared in a Small Press version.  So, what I had in 2009 was a strip that had been reworked and re-titled as The Return Of The Gods: Twilight Of The Super Heroes. I had thought Adventure would only go for six issues so the strip was perfect and I would finally see it in print in some form!

 
Frank: And Adventure is at issue 10 now!  But you combined the strip into Black Tower’s first graphic novel in 2012 and it did quite well –glowing reviews— so why a new version and how is it different (I know I’ve read my copy and its brilliant but for the readers)?

Terry: Well, the original book was a trade version of the six part series from Black Tower Adventure and came to a total of 196 pages. I talked to reviewers who are also comic artists/writers and we had a round robin discussion of the book. Most said that it was far better and certainly more enjoyable than DC Comics “52″ series and…fun!

But as we talked I realised that I had missed an opportunity because, since 1984, Black Tower has incorporated a lot of very obscure old UK Golden Age characters and some of these just appeared in a strip -no origin or anything.

Frank: But not included in the original six part story?

Terry: No, and as far as I was then concerned,  it was too late to sort that out and include some of them –though the Golden Agers are represented. However,  I had to re-think seriously re-think this later on.




Frank: You notoriously do not use scripts for your own work so how did you go about this series?

Terry: As you say, I never ever work with a script on things I am working on myself. I always start with a blank sheet of paper, pencil, pens and then see what develops. It gives a lot of spontaneity -I really have no idea what is going to happen on a page or even the next panel!

As far as the story is concerned I found that I was incorporating bits of The Ultimate Game and The Cosmic Fulcrum –another multi-character series.

After Return was published I was rummaging through an old box looking for an old reference image and found a thick wad of A3 pages –about 45 pages in total that were the build-up to the original strip -I thought those pages had been lost years ago. I read through it and realised the pages actually explained a few things and was paced for the big event. That put me in a rather odd position.

I had a week or so to decide whether or not I wanted to leave Return as it was or to tidy up the old pages and make it more complete. I also realised that there would have to be new  pages drawn to bridge the various story links. Then I thought that this was a chance to once and for all explain everything that had been going on in Black Tower strips since 1984 and explain the incorporation of the old Golden Age characters and their origins. It also helps to set up The Green Skies book in late 2013.

I figured the final book would total 250-260 pages so when I finished it and found over 300 I was a little taken aback.

A few people who got the advanced rough book just started raving about it so I thought “Okay. Job done. Move on!”

Frank: And it is a real cracker. But for those who know nothing about the book could you summarise it?

Terry: AGH! Well, it begins slowly enough with Earth’s heroes going about their daily tasks –such as fighting a giant robot controlled by a mad scientist’s brain, some villains,  both “regular” and mystical not to mention even vampire alien high priests of some mysterious cult and their zombie followers attacking various heroes to put them temporarily out of the way. Oh, of course there is a ghost and a young genius lost in time.

Pretty mundane super hero stuff really. “Just another day”.

But there is a huge alien Mother-ship near the Moon and psychics around the world have been getting vivid images of this for months –even non-precogs. Earth’s mystical heroes are stumped.

Then strange orange spheres chase some of Earth’s heroes in the UK, France, Czech Republic, Mexico, Russia and other parts of the world. Once touched by the globes that deliberately seek them out the heroes vanish into thin air –are they dead? Is some super villain exacting revenge?

Black, impenetrable domes suddenly appear and cover cities world-wide. Those outside are puzzled while those within face a terrifying reality…

…Alien invasion of Earth!

And then there is a war brewing between the Dark Old (Lovecraftian type) Gods and the pantheons that followed –Greek, Babylonian, etc.. After millennia of waiting the new gods will either triumph and return to Earth or be defeated…and whichever side wins it won’t be good for humanity.

There are warriors from various conflicts in the Earth’s past that are having to battle each day on some mysterious endless plain and whether they die in battle or not they are back the next day!

No one suspects the driving force, the evil twisted schemer,  behind the events that could cause destruction and chaos throughout the multi-verse.  Assaulted on all fronts can Earth’s defenders succeed or will they fail…is this truly the end?

The final words of the character Jack Flash on the last page apparently gave readers goose-bumps!


Frank: Those are chilling final words!!  But, as no shops or distributors wanted to touch what I, in my honest opinion, consider the really be one of the greatest British super hero sagas I’ve ever read –better than my old favourite Zenith- how can people buy a copy?

Terry: I thought you would never ask! It’s only available online at the moment so people will need to check out:

http://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper-scharf/the-return-of-the-godstwilight-of-the-super-heroes/paperback/product-20659931.html

Frank: Terry, good luck with the book and I cannot wait for Green Skies!!




Maybe a  low res glimpse will pull you all in?












ALL artwork and characters are (c)2013 T. Hooper-Scharf and BTCG

Let Me Take You On A Joyride ( No. 2 1946)

My THANKS once again to Ernesto for this. I had thought I'd posted it already but...

Ernesto's message read:

Hi Terry,

Just scanned this all Bob Wilkin comic from the 1940's, but no specific date on it as usual.

Didn't know he had done any small independent comics, but I guess everyone was trying their hand back then, and certainly nice to come across a copy. Obviously there were at least two issues.

Trust you might know something more on all this.

Cheers,

Ernesto

There were 5 issues in total and all published in 1946.  Now, Bob Wilkin is only credited with issue number one -I've no idea about 2-5.  The first issue is listed as "NN" -"No number". I'm guessing Wilkin must have worked on the others -the proof is here!

Never seen this particular comic  before so it's a real find.  By the art style I'm guessing this is Wilkin of seaside postcard fame?

I'm hoping to get more info on him as well as, I hope, a photo, for the Golden Age blog and the Archives Yahoo group.

And that's about all I know!!

Fancy Some JOLLY ADVENTURES ?

Another big THANK YOU to Ernesto for this.  He wrote:

 Hi Terry,

Another 1940's scan for you.

This unnumbered issue is presumably the first issue of Jolly Adventures from Martin and Reid. According to his Wiki page Mick Anglo did a story, "Danger Inc" (Jolly Adventures #4, Martin and Reid, 1948), and he may well have done others, so there were at least 4 issues. I include a scan of the front cover of issue 3 thanks to the Comics UK site.

THe funnies strips in the issue all look to be from the same artist, but the Gaol Break and Strange Facts look decidely different. Hopefully you may have some clues in the great 'spot-the-artist' game. 

Cheers,

Ernesto

Well,  There were around 23 titles with "Jolly" in them -all by different publishers!

JOLLY ADVENTURES ran for 9 issues between 1946-1949.  H. E. Pease is credited as Artist for no.1 and 2-9 Louis Diamond.  I believe that this is actually issue one.  I think Lambiek has an entry on him as either "Charlie Pease" or Albert T. Pease.  The thing, apart from the artwork, that leads me to believe this is Pease is the lettering which is very distinctive -particularly the letter "L" with the little wave.

Let's face it, Louis Diamond's work was MUCH different.

Now whether GAOL BREAK is Pease using a serious style I have no idea. Again, far different from Diamond's style.

So, thanks for sharing a first issue of a comic I knew of vaguely but had never seen!

Note

As usual I'll leave the pages at this size for a week before reducing them. 

An Early UK Time Traveller: Bring 'Em Back Hank! (Gerald Swan Comics)

 

The Story Of Herbie Kirby And The Origin Of The Phantom Detective

Above: 1936(?) photograph of Herbert (“Herbie”) Kirby -top of steps.  He was working on Bristol trams while writing short text stories for boys papers published by Target Publications of Bath. Mystery Of The Tombs in the 1935 Rattler comic may have been one of his pieces.

Below: Fred Astaire in Top Hat (1935) Kirby told me: “I saw the famous American song and dance man, Fred Astaire and he always had that look of being relaxed but ready to spring into action and dance.  He also had this very easy manner of speaking. I thought I would really like to write and draw a comic set (strip) with a character like that.”

Originally, Herbert explained, “I wanted to make him a magician of some type but it just would not solidify as an idea.  It just did not work.”




But then Kirby went to France though he would never even hint at why -his daughter, Rosemary, explained why after his death.  On this visit, however, he was pausing by a book stall “Then I saw it!  It was as though I had been guided across the Channel to see this one illustration that made the entire silly idea work!”

Fantomas, created by Marcel Allain and Pierre Souvestre. Apparently, after his work had concluded, he found “a little back-street ‘flea-pit’ (cinema)” that was showing the film (or one of them). “It was that blessed mask! Just that one little addition to the formal costume gave the right air of mystery.  It was then that I realised if I could interest a publisher I needed to have a good schpiel to sell it.”




Herbert felt that copying the master criminal idea of Fantomas would be wrong.  Or as he called it “stealing the work of someone else.”  However, Raffles, the gentleman thief had been portrayed wearing top hat and tails.

A trip to a Woolworth store in Bristol led to Herbert buying a copy of the famous ghost hunterElliott O’Donnell’s Twenty Years’ Experience as a Ghost Hunter (1916).  “He could spin a good yarn -and the chap had been in the Bristol newspaper a few times concerning hauntings. I began reading the book on a train to Weston-Super-Mare and fell to sleep.  I do hope that I never snored! I had been working day and night so was plum-tuckered out. Anyways, I had a dream of this character in top hat and tails and domino mask who was leading me around this haunted house and I said to him: ‘But why are you not afeared of these ghostly things?’ to which he replied, in a deep and cultured voice: ‘Because, like these lost souls, I too, am dead!’  And that was it. I woke with a start and began making notes!”


So it was that, in 1937, The Phantom Detective came to life -or as Herbert put it: “to death!”


There was a text story with a small Phantom Detective illustration by Herbert but he had no copies -most of his work was lost in the Blitz. He thinks (he was very old when I met him) that the publication was The Merry Midget.

There were “two comic sets” -“The Haunting Of Number 43 Old Yard” and “The Haunted Tram” for which Target paid him but he never saw the strips in print. I gave up searching for these but hope to find them one day!

It was at my third meeting with Herbert that I broached the subject of new Phantom Detective strips.  He liked the idea and was pleased with what he saw.

So, when you see the Phantom Detective remember a very old man (the family had no birth certificate but Herbert was certainly just over 100 years of age when he passed away) who had a very adventurous life, loved writing prose as well as drawing comic strips -including a try out on the original Captain Briton (Britain) from Fleetway in the 1960s which never got to print.