Okay, I knew that Weird Science was a comic, but I never really put two and two together before, ha!
On Monday, October 21, 2013 8:39:29 AM UTC-4, cwpreston wrote: > Surprising- a list that has some trivia I really didn't know > > http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/ > > Six things you may not know orginated in comics > Six by 6 <http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/category/six-by-6/> > by *Chris Arrant <http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/author/carrant/>* > |October 20, 2013 @ 12:00 PM > | 2 > Comments<http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/#comments> > > | > > 1 > 2<http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/2/> > Next > »<http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/2/> > > [image: > Header]<http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Header.jpg> > > Comic book adaptations are a big deal — on the big and small screens and > in video games. But there’s a number of popular franchises in modern media > whose comic book origins have been forgotten and even de-emphasized by > their owners. In this week’s *Six By 6*, I look at six concepts that are > well-known by the world at-large who share a secret origin in sequential > art. > > [image: Aliens Vs Predator] > > *Aliens Vs. Predator * > > **In 2004, 20th Century Fox put together two of horror/sci-fis biggest > villains — and biggest franchises — in the film *Aliens vs. Predator > *(frequently > abbreviated to *AvP*). The live-action movie did great business — earning > nearly three times its budget — and prompted a sequel as well as renewed > interest in both franchises. But the idea to bring these two disparate > villains together was actually birthed in the offices of the then-meager > Dark Horse Comics back in 1989. A full year before the movies teased > Predators and Aliens colliding in the 1990 movie *Predator 2*, > writer/editors Chris Warner and Randy Stradley partnered with artist Phil > Norwood on a four issue series bringing these two together. Although they > didn’t create either race of alien, they did figure out a way to make it > work. The series sold well on comic stands, leading to several sequels — > including work by Chris Claremont and Alex Maleev — as well as further > crossovers like *Aliens vs. Predator vs. Terminator *and even *Superman & > Batman vs. Aliens & **Predator*. Get on that, Hollywood. > > [image: Addams Family] > > *The Addams Family* > > Remember the original *Addams Family*, the black & white television > series from the 1960s? That’s not the original. The family of Addams > actually premiered in series of one-off gag strips by cartoonist Charles > Addams in the pages of the *The New Yorker *in the late 1930s. In the > original comics they were an unnamed American gothic family, and were only > given names when the television show was put into production. Based on his > childhood hometown of Westfield, New Jersey, the *Addams Family *concept > took on a life outside of comics that dwarved its sequential art origins. > Back in 2010 a book titled *The Addams Family: An Evilution *was > published, tracing the origins of the macabre bunch from a one-time window > washer to becoming a staple of modern culture. > > [image: Donkey and Elephant] > > *Democrats as Donkeys and Republicans as Elephants* > > Great logos and mascots have an over-sized persona that overwhelms > whatever origins it might have — but did you ever stop to think why > political parties are named after donkeys and elephants? These animal > identifications actually are a result of a late 19th century cartoonist > named Thomas Nast. In 1870 Nast illustrated a political cartoon with a > donkey — standing in for Democrats — kicking a despondent and already > beaten-down lion. Back in 1828 future U.S. President Andrew Jackson took up > a donkey icon after being called one by his political opponents, but it > wasn’t a mascot for his party itself. The association between Republicans > and the elephant was created by Nast four years after the Democrat/Donkey > creation, again for a political strip. In it, an elephant labelled “The > Republican vote” was among many zoo animals being scared by the Democratic > donkey, dressed in a lion suit. > > From all records, both parties took to their animal mascots relatively > quickly — each emphasizing the positive aspects of their respective > animals despite some obvious downsides to each as well. Political spin, > 19th century style. > 1 > 2<http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/2/> > Next > »<http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/2/> > > Six by 6 <http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/category/six-by-6/> > by *Chris Arrant <http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/author/carrant/>* > |October 20, 2013 @ 12:00 PM > | 2 > Comments<http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/#comments> > > | > > 1<http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/>2 > « Previous > <http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/> > > [image: Tales From The Crypt] > > *Tales From The Crypt* > > Man, the Cryptkeeper. That voice by John Kassir and that immaculately > decrepit puppet was a staple of my teenage years in the early 1990s, but it > owes itself both in concept and character to a 1950s-era EC Comics series > of the same name. The advent of the Comics Code in 1955 cut the series > short, but it’s lived on — like a story pulled straight out of the comics > anthology — with movies, the television series, a pinball machine, and even > a Saturday morning cartoon and a game show. But it all started with a > little horror anthology comic with a who’s who of 1950s comic talent like > Wally Wood, Harvey Kurtzman, Joe Orlando, Will Elder, Jack Davis and others. > > [image: Ripley's Believe It Or Not] > > *Ripley’s Believe It or Not!* > > **This chain of tourist-y museums of oddities is the public face to a > franchise started by a California cartoonist/entreprenuer named Robert > Ripley. Ripley, whose real life could be a *Believe It Or Not* story*, *got > his start as 1910s sports star — in handball. After doing an illustrated > book on handball, Ripley segued into a daily newspaper strip for the *New > York Globe *in 1918 about sports feats but quickly broadened his scope to > feats around the world one year later. After establishing himself, he > became a sensation in the 1930s when his strip was syndicated by King > Features. Ripley continued to draw the strip for years, and even hosted > future comics greats like Bob Clarke and even a young Charles M. Schulz. > But Ripley saw the expansion potential in the *Believe It Or Not *franchise, > expanding to a radio series, films, musical and his first museum in 1932. > At one point Ripley was even named the most popular man of America by the > *new York Times*. And although the *Ripley’s Believe It Not *comic strip > still runs to this day, sadly most people see it as a tie-in rather than > the basis for the entire franchise. > > [image: Weird Science] > > *Weird Science* > > **For men of a certain age, Kelly LeBrock started their interest in > science. But the basis for the *Weird Science *film by John Hughes all > started out of a sister publication of the earlier mentioned *Tales of > the Crypt *comic series by EC in the 1950s, titled *Weird Science*. The > movie itself is based on a single 8 page story that appeared in the series’ > fifth issue back in 1951 called “Made of the Future” by Al Feldstein (which > is online > here<http://marswillsendnomore.wordpress.com/2011/06/07/origins-of-omac-made-of-the-future-ec-comics/>.) > > Feldstein’s story holds little surface resemblance to the movie in terms of > characters, instead being about a lonely scientist who travels to the > future to get a genetically-engineered wife. I like the movie’s story > better. > 1<http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/>2 > « Previous > <http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2013/10/six-things-you-may-not-know-orginated-in-comics/> > > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "The Unique Geek" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/theuniquegeek. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
