Absolute OutrageAbsolute OutrageThis is not about p*l*t*cs or B*sh. but it is about Outrage. Outrage over the lack of respect the commercial news media has for the comic book art form and the people who work for it. A lack of respect that translates into a disregard for the truth.
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Alex Toth (rhymes with 'both') was a comic book artist who also worked in animation. he produced work in nearly 600 comic books dating back to 1943. In the '60s and '70s he created and designed Space Angel, Space Ghost, Birdman, the Galaxy Trio, Shazzan and Clue Club. He also produced design work for animated series such as Fantastic Four (which was created by Jack Kirby), Josie and the Pussycats (created by Dan de Carlo) and the Super-Friends (featuring the Justice league characters designed by Siegel & Shuster, Kane, Finger & Robinson, Moulton, Nodell, Fox & Lampert, and others). He also worked on "Battle of the Planets" aka G-force and designed the character 7-Zark-7 for that series. While many comic book inkers favor a modeled approach using varied line widths, shading and feathering to indicate form, Toth favored a simplified, stripped down approach, giving figures a clean, unwavering and 'coloring bookish' outline and a precise clean form. This simple approach is easier to animate, but that doesn;t mean it's easier to draw. It is actually harder to indicate a three dimensional form with just an outline; the less lines used, the more exact they must be. Alex Toth passed away on May 27th at the age of 77. It is reported that he died at the drawing board with a pen in his hand.
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Over the years DC has had many characters named Batwoman or Batgirl. Because batman has been in print continuously since 1939 it is not always easy to determine a clear dividing line between the Golden and silver Age (or Earth one and Earth-two) versions of the Batman mythos. In the fifties Kathy Kane was Batwoman and her niece Betty occasionally aided her as Bat-girl. In the mid-sixties "new look" era Barbara Gordon, the police commisioners niece, became Batgirl. This character also appeared on the Batman televsion series, on the internet flash animation "Gotham Girls" series and on the animated "The Batman" show. In the comic book continuity she was shot and crippled by the Joker in the graphic novel "The Killing Joke" and, wheelchair bound, became Oracle, organizer of the group known as "Birds of Prey" (this version also appeared on the TV series of the same name). Helena Bertinelli, the Huntress, briefly adopted the role, and most recently Cassandra Cain, a mute Asian martial artist, used the identity but has since abandoned it. Alicia Silverstone played Barbara Wilson, Alfred Pennyworth's neice, and Batgirl, in the film "Batman and Robin". In the late '80s a comic book mini-series called "Crisis On Infinite Earths' simplified the DC multiverse and removed most parallel versions of Earth, deleting much past contuinity and allowing for a fresh start.This summer a comic book series called "52" will introduce a new, different version of Kathy Kane who will, like her '50s namesake, adopt the mantle of Batwoman. There is some media publicity surrounding her sexual orientation for some reason.
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I have mentioned these two unrelated items, the passing of comics and animation legend Alex Toth and the history of Batman's female counterparts, for a reason. There are people in the news media incapable of getting the facts straight, even on simple matters.
I have seen online obituaries for Toth accompanied by a clip from "Space Ghost, Coast to Coast", a Cartoon network series from the '90s which Alex Toth did not work on and had no connection to, other than the fact that it featured characters which he had designed some thirty years earlier. The artwork shown was NOT drawn by Toth.
And I have seen several articles on line concerning the introduction of the new Batwoman, and her sexual orientation. One was accompanied by a picture of the Batgirl from the Saturday Morning cartoon series "The Batman". Another was illustrated with a photo of actress Yvonne Craig in her garb and cowl as Batgirl from the '60s TV show. The information concerning the new Batwoman in said articles does NOT pertain to the Saturday Morning cartoon character Batgirl or, to the best of my knowledge, to actress Yvonne Craig, who has reportedly been married since 1988.
It is unfortunate and disrespectful that a supurb artist should have his obituary illustrated with artwork he did not create. And it is unfortunate that some parents might become concerned about a Saturday morning cartoon character who has nothing to do with the article her picture is used to illustrate. And it most sad that the professional news media clearly has so little regard for the truth.
= Napoleon Park =
