In
1949 in the pages the Fiction House title RANGERS COMICS a new comic
strip was introduced. The official name was The Secret Files Of Dr.
Drew and it illustrated the case logs of a specialized investigator
of that name. But Dr. Drew was no mere private eye but a
‘supernatural detective’ dealing in mysteries involving the
arcane and the macabre.
The
series was the brainchild of cartoonist Jerry Grandenetti. Af the end
of WW2 Jerry attended Brooklyn's Pratt Institute and after graduating
he was making the rounds of the various comics publishers trying to
find work. He managed to hook up with Will Eisner’s studio and
became an essential ingredient to the team that produced Eisner’s
Spirit strip. For the gig at Fiction House, Grandenetti was so
immersed in Eisner’s world that the artwork on Dr. Drew is
virtually identical to that found in the Spirit!
I
recently read the entire series in one setting and damn was it a fun
read. Trying to pick out 2 stories to present here was a challenge,
as they were all of a uniform quality. But ultimately I’ve select
my two faves.
Pat
Seeing this work it is hard to imagine this is the same Jerry Grandenetti who did so many stories for Warren Publications. As a kid I hated those Warren stories but have grown to love them!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing these. I once had the thrill of holding the original pages to a Grandenetti Dr. Drew story up close. Amazing stuff!