Time Travel Tuesdays - Miss America Romance Comic Featurette by Mart Nodell!

Today's Time Travel post is a very special one! June has been a big month for the Green Lantern! Even though the film didn't perform as well as expected and DC decided to go with the story of Hal Jordan, the hoopla surrounding the movie still made me really proud of my grandfather -- the creator of the original Golden Age Green Lantern!

Me and my grandparents,
Marty and Carrie Nodell in 1988

Not only did my grandfather draw superhero comics, he dabbled in other comic book genres, including romance! The following little featurette "Charm Corner" is from Miss America v7#33 [66] (April 1950), an issue in which he also served as Art Associate.

Prepare yourself to learn some charm and etiquette...
from my grandpa!

Pretty cute, huh?! I especially like the battling teeth! This issue is definitely on my want list, but for now, these scans of "Charm Corner" are courtesy of Dr. Michael J. Vassallo of the Timely-Atlas-Comics Blog! For more information on the history of the Green Lantern, check out this month's issue of Alter Ego wholly dedicated to the character!

A Somber Cautionary Tale - Win Mortimer's Pajama Party!

This four page Win Mortimer illustrated story, "Pajama Party: The Night I Wish Never Happened" from Young Romance #200 (July/August 1974) is a tad unexpected. Stuck in between the usual stories of flirting and heart break, this somber tale chronicles a teenager and the disastrous results of her decision to serve alcohol to her friends one night. Though nothing completely tragic happens, its tone is still unusual to the romance comics. My favorite line?

"So we left my mother's wigs on the chair, and we ran downstairs feeling frisky, and I made the next big mistake that night, by showing them my father's whiskey."

One can only wonder how effective this was, but it definitely points to a younger demographic. Quite a different scene from a mid-1950s romance panel!

"I Hate You, Darling"
Love Romances #54
(December 1955)