Posted By Dan Greenfield on Feb 16, 2024 | 4 comments

Dig colorist Walt Grogan’s Bronze Age take on a Don Kramer commission…

By WALT GROGAN

As you may know, I’m a huge Fawcett/DC Captain Marvel fan and I’m always on the lookout for a good Cheesy illustration to color. But I’ll also admit that I’m not the biggest Captain Marvel Jr. fan. Nothing against the Little Blue Cheese, but he never grabbed my attention like his namesake.

So, imagine my surprise when one of Freddy Freeman’s biggest fans and a buddy of mine, Dave Artman, posted this awesome piece of Junior taking on the one of the absolute worst villains ever created, Captain Nazi — a piece that he commissioned and was penciled, inked, and toned by one of the modern Justice Society’s greatest artists, Don Kramer.

I was taken aback by Don’s masterful layout and I decided that I had to color it up and add trade dress —  not only because it’s electric but also because it takes down a Nazi and there’s never anything wrong with that!

When I look at a commission, one of the first things I do is determine if it makes a better cover or splash page. Don’s piece just looked like a cover to me. The next thing was to decide what era it belonged to and even though it seemed to swing a bit toward the 1990s’ The Power of Shazam!, every issue of that title featured a beautiful Jerry Ordway painted cover — so it just wouldn’t fit.

So, I had to reach back further as it seemed suited to be a cover from the 1970s Shazam! series as it reached its more realistic, yet implosive end before moving to World’s Finest Comics.

Alan Weiss

Sure, Junior had just faced off against Captain Nazi in Issue #34, but why couldn’t that diabolical villain return for a repeat battle just a couple of issues later? The big question: Who’s throwing that lighting bolt?!?

Anyway, here it is, in living color… the imaginary cover to Shazam! #36: Captain Marvel, Jr. vs Captain Nazi — Round 2 by “Dynamite” Don Kramer!

Make sure you check out Don Kramer on Facebook or via his website, donkramerart.com.

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MORE

— SUPER JUNIOR TEAM-UP: The Comics Series We All Wanted. Click here.

— Dig These 13 Fantastic Vintage CAPTAIN MARVEL Toys. Click here.

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A 10-year-old Walt Grogan fell in love with the Big Red Cheese thanks to essays written by Dick Lupoff and Don Thompson in the paperback edition of All in Color for a Dime, released in 1970 and bought for him by his father off a paperback spinner rack in a liquor store on the South Side of Chicago. Walt runs The Marvel Family Web Facebook page devoted to all incarnations of the Fawcett/DC Captain Marvel and blogs about Captain Marvel at shazamshistorama.com.