The great comics artist Russ Heath, famed for his work across multiple genres such as war comics, horror and non-superhero adventure, died at age 91 this week. The Hollywood Reporter has an obituary here and the Comics Journal has a detailed remembrance here.
Heath was known for his detailed rendering of military vehicles and hardware and worked on numerous war comics, starting with EC and Timely/Marvel through regular features in DC's G.I. Combat and Our Army at War titles. He was the regular artist on DC's "Haunted Tank" feature and Se Devils title, thanks to his talents at depicting scuba divers and underwater.
An Air Force veteran, Heath also was great at depicting aircraft and aerial battles. Pop artist Roy Lichtenstein plagiarized two of his panels from All American Men of War #89 to create his paintings "Brattata" and "Okay Hot-Shot Okay!"
Though uncredited, Heath also created the artwork for ads for plastic solider sets that ran in comic books for years. And he was a regular assistant to Harvey Kurtzmann and Willie Elder on their "Little Annie Fannie" strip in Playboy magazine.
We'll be paying tribute to Heath with a series of posts this week, spotlighting different aspects of his art. Let's get started with a look at his diverse work across multiple comics genre. Scans via Heritage Auctions and the Grand Comics Database.
A
multilinguistic singer, songwriter, performer and comedian, Gaillard
swung in every genre with a uniquely funny, yet seriously musical,
style. More than a crazy cult figure, he’s a hero to kids for his ditty
“Down by the Station,” and his “Oronee” songs pepper the soundtrack of
the FX series, Better Things. This collection presents every track he
cut for Norman Granz’s pre-Verve labels, plus 16 rare singles recorded
for MGM, and 10 previously unreleased alternate tracks.
Track listing
Disc: 1
1. Opera in Vout (Groove Juice Symphony)
2. Tip Light
3. Arabian Boogie
4. Boip! Boip!
5. The Bartender's Just Like a Mother
6. The Hogan Song
7. Money, Money, Money
8. Puerto - Vootie
9. Momma's in the Kitchen But We've Got "Pop" on Ice
10. Down By the Station
11. I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance With You
12. Serenade to a Poodle
13. Communications
14. Organ - Oreene
15. Little Red Riding Woods
16. When Banana Skins Are Falling (I'll Come Sliding Back To You)
La-La Land Records, Paramount Pictures and The Carmen Dragon Music
Library present the world premiere release of composer Carmen Dragon’s
(COVER GIRL, WHEN IN ROME, KISS TOMORROW GOODBYE) original motion
picture score to the classic 1956 sci-fi chiller INVASION OF THE BODY
SNATCHERS, starring Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter and Larry Gates, and
directed by Don Siegel.
Renowned composer/conductor/arranger Carmen
Dragon creates an astoundingly complex and groundbreaking work, (his
inventive use of low, staccato piano notes for suspense would inspire
many composers to do the same) that perfectly emboldens the film’s
sci-fi terror and paranoia, while never neglecting the story’s human
emotions or its psychological and sociological underpinnings.
Produced
for La-La Land Records by Carmen Dragon’s son-in-law, Richard “Rick”
Henn and Neil S. Bulk, and restored and mastered by Stephen Marsh and
Fernando Lee, this limited edition release of 2000 Units includes source
music bonus tracks and features exclusive, in-depth liner notes by film
music Jeff Bond, with a special note from album co-producer Henn. Dan
Goldwasser’s sharp art design completes a must-have score release that
will take over your entire being.
Details: Walt Disney dreamed for decades about opening the
ultimate entertainment venue, but it wasn’t until the early 1950s that
his handpicked team began to bring his vision to life. Together,
artists, architects, and engineers transformed a dusty tract of orange
groves about an hour south of Los Angeles into one of the world’s most beloved destinations.
Today, there are Disney resorts from Paris to Shanghai, but the original Disneyland in Anaheim, California, which has been visited by more than 800 million people to-date, remains one of America’s most popular attractions.
From the day it opened on July 17, 1955, Disneyland brought history and
fairy tales to life, the future into the present, and exciting cultures
and galaxies unknown to our imaginations.
This bountiful visual history draws on Disney’s vast historical collections, private archives, and the golden age of photojournalism to provide unique access to the concept, development, launch, and enjoyment of this sun-drenched oasis of fun and fantasy. Disneyland documents Walt’s earliest inspirations and ideas; the park’s extraordinary feats of design and engineering; its grand opening; each of its immersive “lands” from Main Street, U.S.A., to Tomorrowland; and the park's evolution through the six decades since it opened. It is a treasure trove of Disney original documentation
and expertise, with award-winning writer Chris Nichols drawing on his
extensive knowledge of both Disneyland and Southern California history
to reveal the fascinating tale of “the happiest place on Earth.”
John Lydon's post Sex Pistols groups is 40 years old this year and the subject of a new documentary and box set. Here's a preview of the film and details on the box.
Box details:
A career boxset coming in the form of a 5CD/2DVD is released to coincide
with the career-spanning documentary film about Public Image Ltd titled
The Public Image Is Rotten. This box set ‘The Public Image Is
Rotten (Songs From The Heart)’ features the PiL Singles Collection,
B-sides, Rarities and Radio Sessions, 12” Mixes, Unreleased Mixes and
Tracks + a Live concert from New York Ritz in July 1989. The DVD
includes PiL promo videos + some live footage from the BBC’s Top Of The
Pops and Old Grey Whistle Test. Just in case that wasn’t enough, we’ve
also included two live concerts, the first Tallinn Rock Summer Festival
in Estonia 1988 and the 2013’s Enmore Theatre in Australia.
Disc: 1
1. Public Image
2. Death Disco
3. Memories
4. Flowers of Romance
5. This is Not a Love Song
6. Bad Life
7. Rise
8. Home
9. Seattle
10. The Body
11. Disappointed
12. Warrior
13. Don't Ask Me
14. Cruel
15. One Drop
16. Reggie Song
17. Out of the Woods
18. Double Trouble
Disc: 2
1. The Cowboy Song
2. Half Mix / Megga Mix
3. Another
4. Home is Where the Heart is
5. Blue Water
6. Question Mark
7. Selfish Rubbish
8. USLS1
9. Turkey Tits
10. Pied Piper
11. Criminal
12. Poptones (BBC, John Peel Session 1979)
13. Careering (BBC, John Peel Session 1979)
14. Chant (BBC, John Peel Session 1979)
15. Cruel (BBC, Mark Goodier Session 1992)
16. Acid Drops (BBC, Mark Goodier Session 1992)
17. Love Hope (BBC, Mark Goodier Session 1992)
Disc: 3
1. Death Disco (12")
2. This is Not a Love Song (12")
3. Flowers of Romance (instrumental)
4. Rise (Bob Clearmountain Mix)
5. Seattle (US Remix 12")
6. The Body (US Remix Extended 12")
7. Disappointed (12")
8. Happy (US Remix 12")
9. Warrior (Extended 12" Mix)
10. Lollipop Opera (from This is PiL)
11. Shoom (from What The World Needs Now...)
12. Death Disco (Original Monitor Mix)
13. This is Not a Love Song (12" Remix)
Disc: 4
1. Annalisa ("New Mix" - Townhouse 1979)
2. Albatross ("Monitor Mix" 1979)
3. Careering (Live Paris 1980) (Previously Unreleased)
4. Banging The Door (Alternative Mix, Townhouse 1980) (aka The Door)
5. Vampire (Unreleased Track - Townhouse 1981)
6. Nineteen Eighty One (Original Version, Townhouse 1981)
7. Bad Night (Unreleased Track - Park South 1983)
8. Things in E (aka Ease) (Alternative Laswell mix 1985)
9. Can you Feel the Fours (Unreleased Instrumental - Farmhouse 1987)
10. Spy Thriller Open and Revolving (Alternative Mix - Farmhouse 1987) (aka Spy Thriller)