Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Evel Knievel Week, Day 3: Who knows what Evel lurks in the hearts of men?

So, who's the greatest and most popular star-spangled hero whose exploits fab artist Cliff Chiang has illustrated? No, no, not that woman of wonder with her satin tights, not this week in this feature. After all, it's Evel Knievel week! Ever wonder why those toys I've been featuring this week were so popular? Who tried to jump over sharks before the Fonz? And what the heck was up with that "swagger stick"? Cliff Chiang explains it all for you in these panels from The Big Book of the '70s!







Panels from "The Decade of Evel" in The Big Book of the '70s (May 2000), script by Jonathan Ridgeway, art by Cliff Chiang



Wednesday Bonus! Even the mysterious and macabre Ghost Rider was not immune to the cult of Evel!


Panel from Marvel Spotlight #7 (December 1972), script by Gary Friedrich, pencils by Mike Ploog, inks by Frank Chiaramonte, letters by Herb Cooper



1 comment:

Unknown said...

Great story. Evel was definitely the Fonz long before the Fonz. He was a regular guy, fun to be around, a hard worker, and a consummate professional stunt man and daredevil. His son Robby is every bit the same which is amazing since he grew up in the shadow of so much media attention. Then again people from Butte Montana share an incredible history they all seem to live up to.