ORIGINAL ART: 8 Garths

 

Garth: People of the Abyss F246 and F266

Compalcomics are offering more Garth strips this month, drawn by Frank Bellamy. The images are gorgeous and clear and make me re-appreciate his work here. 

As Malcolm Phillips, the Director of Comic Book Postal Auctions Ltd,  says:

Welcome to our May/June catalogue. The catalogue is open for bidding. You can place realtime bids at The Saleroom. Click here to visit our catalogue at The-Saleroom. You can also browse lots here and fill out a fax or mail bidding form.

The fact he still gets faxes (is that the plural?) is amazing to me. It's been years since I sent or received one!

Onto the Garth strips

GARTH: People of the Abyss - 2 episodes: F246 and F266

Garth: 'The People of the Abyss' two original artworks (1972) by Frank Bellamy for the Daily Mirror 18.10.72 and 10.11.72. Indian ink on board. 21 x 17 ins (x2)

That's the description for these two strips in Lot #103 (see top of article for the image). Please click on these images and view them in detail. Bellamy's gorgeous linework is sublime. And for those who want to know it's a torch and an electro-gun he's holding in that first strip!  Notice those famous Bellamy swirls which add tone in a light-handed way. In the second strip he creates a bubble of light.

Garth: The Women of Galba: G22 and G26

GARTH: The Women of Galba The Beast of Ultor - 2 episodes: G22 and G26

Garth: 'The Beast of Ultor' [sic] two original artworks (1973) by Frank Bellamy for the Daily Mirror 25/30 January 1973. Indian ink on board. 21 x 17 ins (x2)

These two strips are actually not from "The Beast of Ultor", but from "The Women of Galba" story. I'll let Malcolm know so this may change before you see it. Nevertheless they are lovely drawings. Look at the third panel in G22 and how Bellamy uses diagonals and cuts them off, to show a background of some sort. 

 

Garth: The Wreckers G280 and G283

GARTH: The Wreckers - 2 episodes: G280 and G283

The third lot (#107) has two strips from "The Wreckers". I've always wondered who Bellamy used as a model for his version of Andromeda, a recurring character who meets and helps (and loves) Garth in his time-travelling adventures. Malcolm's brief description:

Garth: 'The Wreckers' two original artworks (1973) by Frank Bellamy (both signed) 24/28 Nov 1973. Indian ink on board. 21 x 17 (x2)

These two strips have some usual Bellamy devices: beautiful woman, the sweeping thrust of an arm,  the frame behind Garth and Andromeda in G283 (the middle panel). 

Garth: The Bride of Jenghiz Khan H245 and H250

GARTH: The Bride of Jenghiz Khan 2 episodes: H245 and H250

These two strips come from "The Bride of Jenghiz Khan" story (Lot #110) are described:

Garth: 'The Bride of Jenghiz Khan (1974) two original artworks by Frank Bellamy (both signed) 18/24 Oct 1974. Indian ink on board. 21 x 17 ins (x2)

 

If you want information on reprints of the strips travel to the menu on the website "Garth Reprints" and I'll add these to the spreadsheet, where I record sales of original art by Frank Bellamy. 

Lastly I NEVER ask for money for the website or blog but gifts are very much appreciated, check out the Mike Noble Fireball XL5 - I suspect it might sell for the higher end of the reserve! And also there are lots of Eagle comics which have Bellamy artwork - but I have those!

AUCTION SUMMARY

GARTH: People of the Abyss - 2 episodes: F246 and F266

WHERE?: Compal/Saleroom -Lot #103
STARTING BID: £450 reserve
ENDING PRICE: £450
END DATE: Sunday 6 June 2021

GARTH: The Women of Galba The Beast of Ultor - 2 epsiodes: G22 and G26 

WHERE?: Compal/Saleroom -Lot #105
STARTING BID: £450 reserve
ENDING PRICE: £920
END DATE: Sunday 6 June 2021

GARTH: The Wreckers - 2 episodes: G280 and G283 

WHERE?: Compal/Saleroom -Lot #107
STARTING BID: £450 reserve
ENDING PRICE: £520
END DATE: Sunday 6 June 2021

GARTH: The Bride of Jenghiz Khan 2 episodes: H245 and H250 

 WHERE?: Compal/Saleroom -Lot #110
STARTING BID: £450 reserve
ENDING PRICE: £840
END DATE: Sunday 6 June 2021

Original Art: Garth on Heritage - People of the Abyss (F243)

F243 Garth: People of the Abyss by Frank Bellamy

Wayne Keil has alerted me to an upcoming Heritage Auction (thanks again Wayne!) which starts March 27 and ends April 2 for a Garth strip by Frank Bellamy from the excellent story "People of the Abyss" written by Jim Edgar - episode F243.

Heritage describe the piece:

Frank Bellamy Garth #F.243 Daily Comic Strip Original Art dated 10-14-72 (Daily Mirror, 1972). Frank Bellamy had a long and rich career before he took over the long-running comic strip Garth (1943-97) in 1971. He handled the art for this UK series until his death in 1976. Previously Bellamy had illustrated tales in Mickey Mouse Weekly, Swift, Boy's World, Look and Learn, Eagle, and TV Century 21 (where he illustrated many Gerry Anderson creations including the Thunderbirds). This piece is a wonderfully hyper-detailed study in light and shadow created in ink over graphite on Bristol board with an image area of 20.5" x 5.25". 

I wondered what else to add to this page and decided to Google the title of the story and what a surprise I got! Wikipedia informed that Jack London, H. G. Wells and London slums are all connected to this story title. In fact once I followed that thread I was reading Jack London's description of London slums with great interest. Dr. AndrzejDiniejko writes:

Jack London (1876-1916) made a significant contribution to Victorian slum literature. In the summer of 1902 he arrived in England to report the coronation of King Edward VII from the perspective of the London poorest inhabitants. Initially, he wanted to spend a few days in the slums but eventually he stayed six weeks in London’s district of Whitechapel disguised as a stranded American sailor, sleeping in cheap doss houses with the poor and destitute, and as a result of his unique investigative literary journalism he wrote the slum non-fiction novel, The People of the Abyss (1903), which was a first-hand critical account of the life of the British underclass by a foreigner. 

I'll leave you to follow the links. But I'm guessing that the phrase must have been known to Jim Edgar when he drafted the script for this Garth strip. If you know the story you'll know that the name is the only connection, as the story is about Garth visiting an undersea world where the Azlans, are fighting octopoid creatures called Homads in a war "of extinction". The fact that all the women are naked in this society is irrelevant but enjoyable to 70s Daily Mirror readers - well at least one half!

Want to read more? Here's a few strips before and after the one on sale (Thanks to "Pete the Pipster").

Garth as it appeared in Menomonee Falls Gazette #104

WHERE?: Heritage Sunday Internet Comics Auction #121714
SELLER:Heritage
STARTING BID:$
ENDING PRICE:$525.80

No of bidders: 9
END DATE: 26 April 2017

Next Garth story is.....by Martin Asbury!

© Daily Mirror

"The People of the Abyss" has finished and today you'll notice in the Daily Mirror that the new Garth coloured strip is drawn by Martin Asbury - not Frank Bellamy. It was Asbury's first strip after he completed "The Man-Hunt" which Bellamy started before his death. This story ran from the 17 January to 29 April 1977 that's 88 episodes so that takes us upto the end of July for this reprint by my calculations.

Martin Baines, the colourist, once again has come up trumps and sent this beautiful example of the opening panels, of which he says "I personally think is one of the strongest Jim Edgar scripts so hopefully you will not be too disappointed."

Certainly not Martin, and for the fun or reading a daily strip I've decided to continue buying the Daily Mirror. However as this is a Bellamy blog I'll take this opportunity to say a few words about the previous story - any guest writers apply now! 

I liked the look of "The people of the abyss" with Garth swimming underwater, meeting octopus-like creatures and the beautiful Liuba, who always appears with a simple thong-type outfit - when not completely naked. Now those of you who knew Nancy, Frank's widow, will know she was happy to tell everyone what a great body Frank thought she had. And in my opinion and awful lot of Frank's women took their details from his wife! Liuba looked so like Nancy it highlights what a great portrait artist Bellamy was.

© Daily Mirror

And in the following scene where she is ill she appears at first with a modest blanket to cover her as she lies on the stretcher, but mysteriously it disappears in the next panel - I'm not complaining! Perhaps it was the fact that they didn't want to waste a blanket as Liuba is about to be lowered back to the deep abyss.

© Daily Mirror

One problem I had as a teenager - when I first read Garth - was the scale of his head and shoulders versus the rest of him - and this is illustrated nowhere better than in the following strip. I was used to my superheroes being drawn by Curt Swan and other DC pals. Or in that perspective foreshortened Kirby way - which exaggerated the action enough for me to like it. These days I find a lot of standard comic art uses worse exaggeration than Bellamy did in this picture

© Daily Mirror

I loved what Martin did in this second strip. The swinging action of Garth sending a live lamp at the wet frogman which Bellamy drew really hits home with Martin's colouring - wonderful.

© Daily Mirror

And here to show you what I mean is the original black and white version - scanned and cleaned up a bit. Remember back then this would have appeared on pulp paper and been nowhere as nearly as clean as this!

F281-282 © Daily Mirror

I look forward to seeing what happens after Martin Asbury's story to see if we return to Bellamy again. I will let you know

Latest Garth story today in the Daily Mirror: People of the Abyss

Today (Monday 16 April 2012) the new Garth story starts and once again I have to say thank you to Martin Baines, whose colouring I'm enjoying a lot, for sending me the new coloured strip

I've been on holiday for a week so am still catching up with hundreds of emails, RSS feeds etc etc so I'll make this quick - after all you're here for Frank Bellamy artwork not my ramblings!

Martin sent this to me to let me know that the 'Cloud of Balthus' story was ending and a new story starting

© Daily Mirror

and then sent today's episode which when enlarged looks brilliant.

© Daily Mirror

For those who want to know, Frank Bellamy illustrated the Jim Edgar script "People of the Abyss" between the 7 September1972 - 23 December 1972 (Numbers F211-F303) in the Daily Mirror. The story has been reprinted before in  The Daily Mirror Book of Garth, 1976; the Titan reprint series, that was unfortunately never completed, Garth Book Two: The women of Galba, 1985 and also in the fan newspaper strip reprints Menomonee Falls Gazette #98 (29 October 1973) - #114 (18 February 1974).