For a second month in a row, the Flintstones newspaper comics found in weekend newspapers were centered around Fred, Wilma, Pebbles and Dino. Fred’s “bosom buddy” Barney is nowhere to be found in the five comics published in November 48 years ago. Neither is Betty. And, for that matter, the comics-only character Pops isn’t around either.
We’ll get to 1970 in a moment. We do have two comics from 50 years ago this month, courtesy of the Richard Holliss archive in England (unfortunately, he doesn’t have the remainder for that month). Barney does appear here. Barney and Fred’s fellow water buffalos make an appearance in that month. As a side note, there is a fraternal group in England known as the Royal Antediluvian Order of Water Buffalos. One wonders what they thought, if anything, of the Flintstones’ frat.
November 17, 1968: Minimal backgrounds. A comparatively small opening panel.
November 24, 1968: Good old Fred! His ego is out of check just like it was in the first cartoons of the TV series (note his expressions). And Wilma punctures it, just like in those first cartoons.
Now on to 1970.
November 1, 1970: More minimal backgrounds. The idea of Pebbles playing charades is a good one.
November 8, 1970: I always like Gene Hazelton’s animal designs and his crocosaurus (well, what else would it be called in the Flintstones?) in the final panel is really good. There’s a nice use of foreground and background in the panel, too.
November 15, 1970: Dino doesn’t think to himself very often but he does in this comic. The clichés of the wife going home to mother and the wife who’s a lousy cook get plopped into this story.
November 22, 1970: Wife inept at hammering and other “men’s” work around the house? Yup, another dated cliché.
November 29, 1970: The opening panel makes this one. Look at those dinosaur expressions in the opening panel. The half-silhouette panel is nicely composed and we have a volcano pumping out smoke like you’d see in the comics when Harvey Eisenberg was drawing them.
As usual, click on any of the comics for a better view
Materials 100% Gene Hazelton.
ReplyDeleteThe Sunday pages from November 1970 were inked by Lee Hooper.
And the Sunday pages from November 1968 were inked by Roger Armstrong.
DeleteThe 11/22/1970 story seems to show that not only can't houses made of rock burn down, but also hammering a nail into a wall made of rock isn't a good idea!LOL
ReplyDeleteYour dream of being the Great Poobah (the great leader of the Royal Order of the Water Buffaloes [which parodies the masonry]) ended going to the drain, Fred!
ReplyDelete(Refering to the Flintstones Sunday page from November 24, 1968 [drawn by the legendary Gene Hazelton and inked by Roger Armstrong].)
The Flintstones Sunday page from November 1, 1970 (drawn by Gene Hazelton and inked by Lee Hooper) is also included in the Comicrazys blog (http://comicrazys.wordpress.com).
ReplyDelete