Cindy the Salesgirl - Too Mod for Her Own Good!

The adventures of Cindy the Salesgirl are some of the few multi-page non-serial story arcs with a recurring character in the romance comics of the '60s and '70s. If you aren't familiar with her, Cindy is a cute shop girl who has to deal with crazy customers on a regular basis -- hilarity frequently ensues. Today's episode from Falling in Love #104 (January 1969) penciled by Win Mortimer, has Cindy helping a customer named Sue who insists on finding an outfit that isn't "too mod."


You see, the guy Sue digs is a total square! Sue wants Cindy's help in picking something out to wear to the dance that her date wont find offensive.


Sue thinks all of Cindy's clothes are too far out and decides to look elsewhere. But when Sue shows up at the dance on Saturday night, her outfit is far more nutty and off the wall than anyone could have anticipated! POW indeed!

Such a cute way to incorporate fashion
with a bit of storyline, don't ya think?

Now for a few things on a more personal note! As many of you probably already know, I have been anticipating a move overseas to Denmark for quite some time. My paperwork has finally gone through and I am leaving on August 21st! Whoooohoooo! I am super excited, but naturally a wee bit stressed out as well! Some of you have asked about the fate of Sequential Crush. No fear! Sequential Crush is here to stay!

I do have a lot of logistical things to sort out in a short time -- personally, as well as with figuring out how to physically move my massive romance comic book collection to another continent on a tight budget. So, I ask that you just bear with me! I am going to take all next week off to start packing and also, head to San Diego for the big comicon! I anticipate that my posts here on Sequential Crush will be less frequent until I am a bit more settled in my new home, but I will still try to post on a semi-regular basis! As always, you can find me on twitter!

Thanks for being the best readers
a girl could ever wish for!

♥♥♥

See you soon!

Long Live Romance Comic Book Style!

Red Velvet Lookbook // Spring 2011
from elsie flannigan on Vimeo.

I'm pretty sure that if the characters from the romance comics came to life, they would look something like this! Good fashion never goes out of style, and it is obvious that the '60s and '70s are here to stay!

Win Mortimer's très
fashionable featurette --
"Cindy the Salesgirl"
Secret Hearts #136
(June 1969)

The Tiny Fists of Mortimer or Identifying a Romance Comic Book Artist

"It is not the thrill of the chase. It's not a game. It's your tiny ineffectual fists."

-Derek to Meredith on
Grey's Anatomy Season One

For longtime readers of Sequential Crush, the fact that Win Mortimer is pretty much my most favorite romance artist of all time should come as no surprise. For those of you new to the blog, you should be made aware immediately -- I love Win Mortimer! His men are handsome; his ladies simultaneously sweet and sexy. Once you get the hang of it, Mortimer's work in the romance comics is actually quite easy to identify, which is partially due to the great little fists he depicted his characters as having. Here are a few examples through the years in which Mortimer's tiny fists stole the show!

Win was drawing fists
way back in his Superman days!

Action Comics #193

June 1954

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Mortimer's fists
were very expressive --
here we see sheer frustration
from "Cindy the Salesgirl."

"Cindy the Salesgirl"
Girls' Love Stories #136
(July 1968)

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A thought bubble is complimented
well by a little Mortimer fist, don't you think?

"No Time for Love!"

Girls' Romances #141
(June 1969)

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The October 1969 issue of Secret Hearts
had two Mortimer illustrated stories in it!
Twice the fist -- all for 15 cents!
"Not That Kind of Girl!"
Secret Hearts #139
(October 1969)

"How Can I Tell Him the Truth?"
Secret Hearts #139
(October 1969)

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A tiny fist put to a
more practical use -- ironing!

"Too Beautiful to Be Loved"
Girls' Romances #147
(March 1970)

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Even guys need to flex
their fist muscles once in a while!

"Substitute Sweetheart"
Heart Throbs #129
(December 1970/January 1971)

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A delightful Mortimer cover,
complete with fist!
Falling in Love #132
(May 1972)

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Mortimer incorporated a little fist action
into the Marvel classic, Night Nurse!

Night Nurse #1
(November 1972)

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Even short two-page stories
deserve the Mortimer fist treatment!
"The Walk"
Young Romance #198
(March/April 1974)

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I count three
little fists in this panel!

"Love Expert"
Young Love #111
(August/September 1974)

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Even as romance comics were winding down,
Mortimer took the time to draw an emotive fist!

"Love is the Answer!"
Young Love #123
(January 1977)

Though small and perhaps not noticeable on a first glance, the curled hand just adds so much and works for so many emotions. Can you see why I love Mortimer so much?! Any Mortimer fist panels you would like to share? Don't forget to check Spidey Super Stories!

Betty's Boutique - Part One

You may remember my "Cindy the Salesgirl" posts from back in June. The story below, "Betty's Boutique" is almost exactly the same as the "Cindy the Salesgirl" stories conceptually. In both, a young, fashionable woman is asked to model the newest in clothing styles for her clients -- only to get a surprise explanation when they don't purchase anything.

From what I can tell, "Betty's Boutique" appeared in three separate issues of Girls' Romances. This particular one, drawn by John Rosenberger, comes from issue #142 (July 1969). The Betty stories were all put out after the Cindy stories, so it is obvious which set the standard. Though they are basically the same stories, Betty seems a bit older, and she is the owner of the shop, whereas Cindy seemed to be an employee of a shop.

Hair extensions at no extra cost when you buy a dirndl!
One week only!

I personally am a huge fan of the O. Henry style ending. Having worked in retail though, the reasons for people in real life trying on a bazillion items and not purchasing anything are far less interesting than in these stories, for sure!

Cindy the Salesgirl - Part Two

The sheer amount of romance comic books that are out there in the world always offer up an opportunity to learn something new. A few posts ago I shared the story of a Cindy (whom I mistakenly called Candy but subsequently changed) the Salesgirl from Secret Hearts #133. When I posted it, I didn't realize that was not the only time Cindy had made an appearance. From what I can tell, she had at least three other little featurettes in the romance books of the late '60s, primarily drawn by Winslow Mortimer.

A few pages from "The Adventures of Cindy the Salesgirl" (A DC Fashion Featurette) out of Falling in Love #98 (April 1968) demonstrate once again that Mortimer was no dummy when it came to drawing beautiful girls.


The writer of the story also seems to have had an uncanny understanding of what the retail world involves. I should know... I did my fair share of working at the mall during high school and college!

How's that for an O. Henry ending? Not too shabby for a romance story!

Well, that's all for this evening! My attention has been a little divided lately. I am working on finishing up my presentation (on romance comics of course!) for the Comic Arts Conference held in conjunction with the San Diego Comic-Con International. I will be posting more details about that soon, but for the next week or so my postings may be sparse. I can't wait to share the presentation with all you readers of Sequential Crush once its all said and done! Be on the lookout!

Blink and You'll Miss It!

If you are looking for a good romance story with a thrilling and sophisticated plot to read on a rainy day, "Cindy the Salesgirl" from DC's Secret Hearts #133 (January 1969) is definitely not for you! It is one of the shortest, most anti-climactic romance stories I have ever read --but, it has great art by one of my favorites, Winslow Mortimer! I have posted the entire story below, all three pages of it!


Before I realized how short the story was, I thought that maybe the woman was trying to play matchmaker for her son and was scouting out potentials at the local department store.


I thought that perhaps on the next page the plump woman's ulterior motive would become clearer...


Nope! It was just my imagination running away with me! Even Cindy looks shocked in that last panel that the story is over so quickly!

Though not the strongest piece of writing in history of romance comics, this little three-pager has a truly great layout. The vertical panels really help to break up the book and give Mortimer's figure work a chance to shine. I also really dig the coloring on the story. The changing background colors and contrasting text panels serve to highlight Cindy, and her splendid outfits.

There is a fair amount of information out there about Mortimer and his work on Superman and other various superhero covers, but I have found very little about his romance work and other work outside of comic books. He obviously had a natural affinity for drawing beautiful woman wearing fashionable clothing, and it really makes me wonder if he had prior experience in fashion illustration or something of that nature. As of yet, I haven't been able to find enough detailed information on him to make a solid statement about his inspirations, but with more digging perhaps I can get closer to that. One of my long-term goals is to do more research on Mortimer and make sure he gets the credit he deserves for his non-superhero work.