Hey Guys,
(Especially Dr. Midnight)

I was watching a cartoon the other day on the cartoon network or some such station. Basically I was flipping channels and came across a new Justice League cartoon. The episode concerned Mr. Miracle asking the League for help because Granny Goodness had kidnapped Oberon.

For all you old time comic book fans out there, Mr. Miracle is an escape artist. I have fond memories of wathcing him do his escapes, and while most of his techniques were improbable or out and out impossible, they were still fun to watch.

Sadly the cartoon ignored that wonderful flavor of old. The two escapes he pulled off may as well have been done by magic. we saw none of it save for him smugly standing nearby with a "what did you expect" attitude.

Well, at least the powers that be over at DC comics still remember him.

I collected all three Mr. Miracle series, as well as several Batman, Superman and Blue Beetle teamups. I also have both Mr. Miracle action figures.

Perhaps I'll one day put them all on display at an escape con.

Steve

Nobody but nobody can beat the Shadow ! The Shadow, BTW, was based on Dunninger...believe it or not.

~Rick~

Yes he was, though Gibson alluded that his physical appearance was based more on Bela Lugosi (check Lugosi out as the red herring in the serial, "The Whispering Shadow").

The Shadow was definitely the ultimate in elusive.

My favorite pulp hero, though, is The Spider. While Richard Wentworth's 'Dirty Harry/Mack Bolan' approach to criminals is less than socially laudible, the series was tops in action; desperate situations; mad, sadistic villains; and emotional highs.

I have copies of the Columbia serials "The Shadow" (Victor Jory, 1940) and "The Spider's Web" (Warren Hull, 1938).

I'm also an old fan of Doc Savage, The Avenger, The Green Ghost, Conan, Solomon Kane and John Carter of Mars.

Steve

I love the Shadow!!!!!I have several radio tapes of it.I think Orsen Wells version of the Shadow was the worst.I had no idea they were based on Joseph Dunninger.Cool!!!!!!

I never had a problem with Welles as the Shadow.
The radio show itself, though, pales in concept next to the pulp novels. The 'easy out' of 'clouding minds by concentration' used in the radio show was not nearly as interesting as Gibson's pulp depictions of ninja-style stealth.
I found it interesting, though, how well they were able to meld the two concepts in the 1990s movie version.

Speaking of which, if you want to see a real 'stinker,' check out George Pal's attempt at bringing Doc Savage to the screen: "Doc Savage, Man of Bronze" (1975) with Ron Ely. It's so bad, I show it to friends on "bad movie nights" (along with such cracked gems as "Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things," "Dracula vs. Frankenstein" and "Rock-n-Roll Wrestling Women vs. the Aztec Ape.")

"Mona...you're a brick!"

Steve