BETTY AND FLIP

Starting in 1958, Betty White found herself traveling to New York to appear on game shows, and Jack Paar liked her so much that she became a regular visitor to his “Tonight Show.”  Paar decided he should find a husband for Betty.  One of the Tonight Show producers was Tom Cochran, who had a bachelor brother named Phil.

 

Phil, as we know, was once Colonel Philip Cochran, a friend of Milton Caniff’s whom Milt turned into ‘Flip Corkin’ in “Terry and the Pirates.” According to White, “devious Jack started talking about what a great idea it would be to introduce Phil and Betty on the show some night.  It became a running gag, and I took it for granted that it was all show talk…”*

It wasn’t all talk, as Paar indeed booked both for the same night, and then all went to dinner at the famed 21 Club, and then Betty went on to more clubs with Tom and Phil.  As serendipity would have it, Betty’s next job was performing in 'The King and I' in a summer theater gig in Warren, Ohio.  White – “Phil Cochran lived in Erie, Pennsylvania, where he owned a large trucking firm and raised horses on his beautiful farm.  Insisting that the drive from Erie to Warren was a cinch, he actually came to see our show on two occasions.  That…was the beginning of a deep and lovely love affair that lasted almost four years.”

The relationship was long distance.  She was a California girl and had no intention of moving to New York.  She even turned down the woman’s spot on “The Today Show” that went to Barbara Walters.  Still, she went to New York often for talk and game show appearances, and things were progressing fine in their relationship, with Phil proposing marriage.  White – “Phil’s proposal was quiet, purposeful, very firm and there obviously had been a great deal of forethought.  He laid out all the reasons why it should happen…however, there was absolutely no way that I could ever pull up stakes and move east, any more then he could envision himself moving to California…The subject was not brought up again.”

In late 1961, Betty White got invited to be on a new game show called “Password”, hosted by Allen Ludden, where she had a good time.  Then she got an offer to do a summer theatre production in Cape Cod of “Critic’s Choice”, a romantic comedy where the male lead would be – Allen Ludden.  Leading up to the show, Ludden, a recent widower, began inviting Betty White out frequently, using their upcoming working relationship as a pretense.  

Phil Cochran came to the show on closing night in Cape Cod.  According to White, “(t)here was a warm kiss of reconciliation [at the end of the play].  On this particular evening, Allen held the kiss longer – much longer – than usual.  No one else may have noticed, but from the third row there was suddenly a loud and expressive clearing of Phil’s throat.  We laughed about it later at dinner.  Some of us more than others.”  

The play moved to another town for a week, during which time White spent more and more time with Ludden.  Cochran made his feelings clear to White that he was in love with her and was jealous of Allen Ludden.  White – “We had a long and serious talk, and I admitted that I needed a little slack to clear my head.”  White continued to see them both on her trips east, until it became too much for all three.  Betty White knew she “loved Phil dearly…but I was in love with Allen Ludden.”  Departing from their break-up conversation, Phil Cochran said, “You may change your mind one day.  You know where I am.”

The next year when it became public that Betty White was engaged to Allen Ludden, Phil Cochran sent her a one-word telegram – “Ouch.”  Phil got the consolation price, though.  He was immortalized by Caniff yet again, this time in “Steve Canyon” as ‘General Phil Philerie.’

*All Betty White quotes are from her book – “Here We Go Again” (1995, Simon & Schuster)

CANIFF AUCTIONS - CAVEAT EMPTOR

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A 1960 "Steve Canyon" Sunday page recently sold for $350.  This is a nice price for a Canyon Sunday.  Originals of this vintage typically go for xxxx.  But was it an original?

I don't think so.  I think it was a proof.  I have a few proofs, all with the date boldly written in the upper left hand corner, and the color of the paper is the same.  I don't fault the seller.  He did not present it as original art, just as a comic strip "in excellent condition."  Let's look at another Sunday strip from the same year.

This is an original Sunday page.  It hasn't turned a dull copper-y color.  No dates written in the corners.  You can see paste-ups and corrections.  This one sold for $800.  The proof was a Buy It Now on Ebay for $350.  The buyer was probably so excited he didn't pay attention to what he was paying for.  Those are poor scans for a $350 item.  Don't hesitate to ask for better scans or more details from the seller.

Another frequent issue is sellers who attribute the work of other artists to Caniff, simply because his name is the most associated with the feature.  For example, "Terry and the Pirates" and the three characters on this cover were all created by Caniff.  But, the art is by George Wunder, who took over the strip when Caniff left it at the end of 1946.  

I've blogged about this next one before...back in 2015!  It's "attributed to Milton Caniff" inking an assistant's pencils.  There's a reason it's been up on Ebay for so long at $300 (or best offer).  I don't think Caniff's brush ever touched this paper.

It's clear that's supposed to be Steve and the woman is Princess Snowflower, a key figure in several Canyon storylines.  The seller has it as Caniff inking an assistant as a tryout.  It may be a tryout alright, maybe even for an assistant job.  But when Caniff inked any assistant, he made it look like Caniff and not the assistant.

Also still out there at $300 is this guy who saved his childhood drawing from 1937, where he copied a panel from a "Terry and the Pirates" strip - 

The seller bills it as a "rare pencil drawing" by Caniff.  I think if you look on the back you'll find the signature of Craptacular Johnson.

We Caniffites have it easy.  Look at what Charles Schulz fans have to put up with:

Good grief!

CANIFF NEWS - AUGUST 2016

Good Grief!  Children and Comics is a new exhibit at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum.  It opened on June 3rd and has a large selection of tearsheets and original art from kid-centric strips.  From the kid who started it all, the Yellow Kid, to modern strips as well as some comic books.  Memorabilia is also featured, including some of the coveted Peanuts vinyl figures by Hungerford from 1958.

For you Caniffites, they have the original of the second "Dickie Dare" strip from August 1, 1933.  How much was riding on those early Dickie strips.  If it had failed, we would never have "Terry & the Pirates" and then no "Steve Canyon."  The mind reels.  Speaking of sturdy Steve, the teenage section of the exhibit has a Sunday from Marth 17, 1957 featuring Poteet.

As a companion exhibit, the adjoining hall has Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream.  This exhibit has the original art to the graphic album of the same name, which served as a tribute to cartoonist Winsor McCay and his Little Nemo strip of a century ago.  Both exhibits run through October 4th.

This is really October 2015 news (bit of a backlog here), but I wanted to make sure all rabid Caniffites know about Cartoons for Victory by Warren Bernard.  WWII was a fertile period for cartoonists, both in creativity and popularity.  Of course, Milton Caniff is well represented.  Not only was this the peak of "Terry and the Pirates", he was also doing the weekly "Male Call" strip for military newspapers, as well as whatever else he could think of to aid our fighting men.  The cover comics from Caniff as well, merging two spot illustrations he did for the homefront pamphlet entitled "What To Do in an Air Raid."

Also from October was the first ever complete collection of Beyond Mars.  From our pals at the Library of American Comics (LOAC), "Beyond Mars" was a Sunday-only strip that only ran in one newspaper!  It was written by popular science fiction author Jack Williamson and drawn by Lee Elias.   Elias was an artist out of the Caniff school, which I wrote about here.   So, it's kind of like 'Steve Canyon in Space.'

Like the Terry and Canyon series from the LOAC, this collection was edited by Dean Mullaney with an introductory essay by Bruce Canwell.

Comics Revue #361-362 was released in June.  It reprints the "Steve Canyon" strips from January 20th to February 16th, 1974, with the Sundays in color.  This issue begins "The Heiress" storyline, in which Summer finds herself the recipient of a mysterious fortune.

This issue also features Tarzan by John Celardo, Flash Gordon by Mac Raboy, and Tarzan by Russ Manning.  Steve Roper was added to the book last issue, and part two continues in this one.  Ask your comics dealer!

Getting up to date now, the Washington Post featured an article on Ohio cartoonists on July 19th.  It appeared in their Comic Riffs feature, written by Michael Cavna.    The article tries to answer the riddle of why Ohio spawned so many of the greats, like Caniff, Bill Watterson and Noel Sickles (though Sickles isn't mentioned).  You can read it here.

CANIFF NEWS - APRIL 2016

VOLUME 3 IS HERE!!!  The big Caniff news of 2015 was the release of "The Complete Steve Canyon on DVD" Volume 3.  After years of setbacks, the project John Ellis began in 2006 has been completed.  This volume contains the final ten episodes of the series (episodes 25-34), each with commentary and each digitally remastered to the same high standards of the first two volumes.  Also included is the original, unaired pilot for the series!  Volume 3 can be ordered separately or as part of the complete series box set.

Volume 6 of "The Complete Steve Canyon" was released by the Library of American Comics on December 1st.  This book reprints all of the daily and Sunday strips from 1957 and 1958, with the Sundays in brilliant color.  Steve ran into a lot of old friends in these two years - Miss Mizzou, Princess Snowflower, Savannah Gay and Col. Index.  Plus, Btuce Canwell puts it all into historical context with his introductory essay.  Order your to-day!

The latest issue of Comics Revue (February 2016) reprints the Steve Canyon strips from 11/25/73 to 11/22/73, with Sundays in color.  This is part one of "Morale Booster", a solo adventure for Summer Canyon in Africa.  

This issue features a Tarzan/Phantom cover by Thomas Yeates.  Yeates is the current artist of the "Prince Valiant" strip.  He also has a current Tarzan story being serialized in "Dark Horse Presents."  

If the folks at Hermes Press were worried about low interest in George Wunder's "Terry and the Pirates", they should be feeling pretty good.  Volume One sold out and Volume Two is on it's way.  Volume Three is set for release on June 20th along with a second edition of Volume One.  I didn't know what I would think of Wunder's take on Caniff's classic, but I've really enjoyed the first two volumes.  Wunder pens a clever yarn and the art is often sublime.

I have a display at my local library of items related to the "Steve Canyon" TV series.  I call it "Steve Canyon: Lost and Found."  What you see is all there is, so don't book your plane tickets.  BUT, if you happen to be on the west side of Cincinnati, mosey on out to the Green Township branch library.  The exhibit only runs through April 29th...so hurry!!

NOT BY CANIFF

As with most famous artists, there will be artwork attributed to them that is not by them.  In the past week there have been three such pieces on Ebay.  Luckily, they are so obviously not Caniff that fans should not be fooled.

This recently sold for $90.  The seller claimed it was a spot illustration by Caniff drawn on a coaster and the figure on the left is Pat Ryan.  He dated it as from 1942.  While to me it in a way resembles Caniff's college style, it in now way looks like how he was drawing in 1942.  Also, he didn't sign it, and I can't tell if that's a signature at the bottom or not.  Below is how Caniff was drawing Pat Ryan in 1942 - 

Did you ever copy art from the comic strips?  I did it as a kid.  I lot of aspiring artists did it as youngsters.  I've read a few interviews where famous artists talked about copying Caniff strips.  This next piece was being sold on Ebay as a 'rare pencil drawing' by Caniff - 

I asked the seller about how he knows it's by Caniff.  He told me he thinks it's Caniff because several people told him it looks like Caniff and it's dated.  Not signed, of course, but why worry about authenticity when you're trying to sell bad art for $300?

I'll say this for it, the date is accurate.  Here's the panel the artist used for reference from the "Terry and the Pirates" Sunday strip dated 11/14/37.

This is the one that's a mystery to me.  It's not Caniff, but it is Steve Canyon and Princess Snowflower. My guess it's a tryout strip done by someone looking to assist Caniff. I've seen a couple of other tryout strips, and  Caniff did have an assistant on the strip from 1953 (Dick Rockwell - read more about him here).  Any sharp-eyed readers know who it is?

The thing that bothers me about these auctions is that the seller is asserting they are pieces by Caniff.  Only the third seller is saying "attributed to."  The rest aren't concerned with accuracy, only making a sale. Buyer beware!

CANIFF NEWS - MAY 2015

ACE is a brand-new magazine covering the world of comics.  ACE is an acronym for All Comics Evaluated and is edited by Jon B Cooke, the man behind "Comic Book Artist" and "Comic Book Creator" magazines.  The first issue features an interview between Cooke and legendary Marvel artist John Romita, Sr.  How did Caniff's art influence Romita?  What Caniff storyline led to the death of Gwen Stacy?  Find out by ordering ACE #1 from your local comic shop.

Leonard Nimoy passed away in February.  Nimoy was a guest actor on the "Steve Canyon" TV series, appearing in episode 17 as a Control Tower Sgt.  The episode was called "The Search" and debuted January 15, 1959.  This episode is available on Volume 2 of "The Complete Steve Canyon on TV" DVD series, which is available here.   I don't know if Caniff ever drew Nimoy, but he did draw Steve Canyon as a Vulcan for the cover of the 1974 San Diego Comic Con program, which can be found here.  

Hillsboro, Ohio is not only the birthplace of Caniff, it is also the seat of Highland County.  Their paper of record - the Highland County Press - recently ran this article about their favorite son as part of a series celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Highland County Historical Society.

This Society is definitely something I'd like to check out the next time I get back to Caniff's Hillsboro.

Cartoonist Irwin Hasen passed away in March at the stunning age of 96.  Hasen drew comic books during the Golden Age, primarily for DC Comics, where he co-created Wildcat.  Hasen is best known as the artist of the long-running "Dondi" comic strip.  "Dondi", which he co-created with Gus Edson, was about a foreign-born war orphan brought to the U.S.  It ran from 1955 to 1986, during which time Hasen was an active member of the National Cartoonists Society.

Hasen was a lifelong admirer of Caniff.  "Caniff was one of my idols," Hasen told Roy Thomas in a 1999 interview, "he kept it simple and he knew how to tell a story."  Hasen was the 1969 recipient of the Silver T-Square award from the NCS, an honor Caniff received in 1957.       

Dark Horse is continuing their series of artist-centric Warren collections with this tome devoted to the work of Alex Toth.  Creepy Presents Alex Toth collects all of his horror stories for "Creepy" and "Eerie" magazines.  Toth was a Caniff devotee and friend, while Caniff himself was a big fan of Toth.

The latest issue Comics Revue (Feb 2015) reprints the "Steve Canyon" strips from June 10th to July 7th, 1973.  It's the conclusion to the storyline that's come to be known as "A Prisoner of Love."  Other highlights from the issue are "Flash Gordon" by Mac Raboy, "Tarzan" by Russ Manning and a "Barnaby" episode guide.

CANIFF NEWS - FEBRUARY 2015

The Complete Steve Canyon Volume 5: 1955-56 came out last month on January 20th.  These exciting years feature the return of old friends and loves, some new ones, and the introduction of Steve's kissin' cousin - Poteet!  Little did Steve (or Caniff) know that this young gal would be co-leading the strip in later years.  The book includes an introductory essay by Bruce Canwell on what Caniff was doing in that era, replete with examples of artifacts of the time.

The December 2014 issue of Comics Revue reprints the Steve Canyon daily and Sunday strips from May 13th to June 9th, 1973.  Steve is on assignment in an unnamed Asian city to follow up on the rumor that a U.S. official with top secret info has gone missing in the mountains.

Also in this issue are "Tarzan" by Russ Manning, "Flash Gordon" by Mac Raboy and a four month continuity from "The Phantom" dailies of 1960.  Ask your comics dealer!

John Ellis of the Milton Caniff Estate has been giving updates on the release of Volume 3 of the "Steve Canyon" TV series on DVD.  Here's the update from February 8th.   Ellis has been restoring this series frame by frame and his long trek is nearly complete.  He hopes to have it out in the next couple of months.

Hermes Press announced the upcoming release of volume two of  "Terry and the Pirates by George Wunder".  Volume One appears to have sold out, as Amazon has none and they sell for cover price or better on Ebay.  Don't expect two full years of continuity from the title, as the first volume was under 14 months of strips.  I felt the first volume was terrific adventure stuff, thought Wunder stumbled in his attempts to match the Caniff wit, and Pat Ryan was kind of a third wheel.  I'm interested to see how the strip progressed.  The book is scheduled for release on March 10th.

The current exhibit at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum focuses on comic strip syndicate King Features.  King of the Comics: William Randolph Hearst and 100 Years of King Features.  The exhibit will examine the newspaper magnate and a century of bringing newspaper comics to the masses.  The promotional material for the exhibit doesn't mention if anything from "Steve Canyon" will be included.  Even though "Canyon" was owned by Field Enterprises, Field had a distribution deal with King, and it was treated like a King strip in their promotional materials.  I hope to get up to the exhibit this month, and I'll let you know!