Posted By Dan Greenfield on Dec 9, 2024 | 1 comment

MORRISON MONDAYS!

By BILL MORRISON

In honor of venerable humor artist Dan DeCarlo’s birthday on December 12, I offer my tribute to Dan and three of his 1950s creations:

This homage to DeCarlo’s 1960 Archie’s Girls Betty and Veronica #52 features Dan himself, flanked by two of his most adorable female characters. The image of Dan (1919-2001) is based on the way he portrayed himself in a number of Timely comics in the 1950s, in stories where he and Stan Lee interacted with their characters, such as Millie the Model and Chili Storm.

On the left is Jetta Raye of the short-lived Standard Comics book Jetta. Opposite her is Josie (whose last name changed throughout the history of the character), created initially by Dan as an unsuccessful syndicated comic strip pitch titled “Here’s Josie,” and later published by Archie Comics under the names She’s Josie, Josie, and Josie and the Pussycats. (She was inspired by his wife… Josie, who was a model.)

And finally, at the bottom is the ingenious star of the Magazine Enterprises kid comic, The Brain.

For more information on Dan DeCarlo’s amazing career and wonderful characters, check out my book, Innocence and Seduction: The Art of Dan DeCarlo — Expanded Edition, which was released earlier this year by Fantagraphics! (Order it in time for Christmas!)

You also can click here to find my 13 FAVORITE DAN DeCARLO PIN-UPS.

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