Monday, July 13, 2015

Al Hubbard in Four Color #389 - April, 1952

Few artists in the history of comics have ever demonstrated such control over gesture, posture, and expression as did the great, Al Hubbard. Judge for yourself! This is from Four Color #389, April, 1952..

10 comments:

  1. the writer does a great job also of capturing the spirit of these iconic characters even though the cartoon versions don't resemble Mickey Rooney or Judy Garland all that much.

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  2. Lysdexicuss: Right? Not even close. I wonder what the thinking was on that?

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  3. The type of energy and humor of the Andy Hardy films comes across in this story, even though the characters look nothing like their film counterparts. (Just for the record it was Ann Rutherford who played Polly Benedict.)

    But here's another puzzler...the Andy Hardy film series had ceased production around 1946 or 47, yet this comic book dates from 1952. Could the films have been rerun on television around that time? (I know they were being rerun in the 60's on television because that was how I got familiar with them.) There has to have been some contemporary name recognition for these to have been published.

    Looking at the comic book itself, I love Al Hubbard's lively drawings. Even though they don't capture his likeness, they capture Mickey Rooney's frenetic energy. I have only come across one or two of these in my collecting adventures, but the issues of Andy Hardy that I have seen have been a sheer delight to look at and read. Thanks for posting this!

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    1. My pleasure, Scarecrow - I hope to be a little more lively with this blog myself in future weeks.

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  4. Probably that if they don't look like the actors, they don't have to pay them a royalty would be my guess.

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  5. Hmm...Polly bears more than a passing resemblance to Veronica Lodge. Then again, Archie was supposed to have been inspired by Andy Hardly.

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  7. In the four(!) months since your scan, I acquired all six of Al Hubbard's Andy Hardy comics.

    Hubbard and illustration lovers everywhere, find these books! Comic characterization at its absolute best.

    For the man who was THE artist on "Mary Jane and Sniffles," "Scamp," and so many others, the Hardy books only elevate his body of work.

    And for those who ever wondered how Mary Jane might have looked when she grew up, just check out Polly Benedict and the other adorable females that populate Hubbard's panels. Betty and Veronica had nothing on these '50s hotties!

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