All-Star Western
Encyclopedia
All-Star Western was the name of three American
comic book
series published by DC Comics
, each a Western fiction
omnibus featuring both continuing characters and anthological stories. The first ran from 1951 to 1961
, the second from 1970
to 1972
and the third is part of the DC New 52 released in September 2011.
— a superhero
omnibus that years before had introduced the enduring team the Justice Society of America
. With the postwar decline in the popularity of superheroes, publisher DC Comics
changed the series format and title. All-Star Western ran 62 bimonthly issues through #119 (July 1961). The cover logo did not include a hyphen until issue #108 (Sept. 1959), when it was much reduced in size and placed above the much larger logo for what was then the title feature, "Johnny Thunder
". Johnny Thunder remained on the cover until the final issue, #119, occasionally sharing it with Madame .44, "the masked outlaw queen."
The first issue contained the features "The Trigger Twins
", created by writer Robert Kanigher
and penciler Carmine Infantino
and running through #116; "Don Caballero", drawn by Gil Kane
, and "Roving Ranger", penciled by Alex Toth
, the writer-creator uncredited; and "Strong Bow", created by writer David Wood and artist Frank Giacoia
. Other features that appeared through the years included "Super-Chief
", by writer Gardner Fox
and artist Infantino; and, beginning with #67 (Nov. 1952), "Johnny Thunder", featuring the masked, vigilante
persona of a schoolteacher in an Old West Mormon
settlement. The character had been created by writer Kanigher and artist Toth in DC's All-American Comics
in 1948.
The series was revived in the following decade, and ran 11 bimonthly issues (Sept. 1970
- May 1972
) before changing its title and, slightly its format to become Weird Western Tales
. All-Star Western vol. 2, #1 starred Pow-Wow Smith, scripted by John Broome
, with art by Carmine Infantino
. The next four starred the characters Outlaw and El Diablo
. With issue #5, the character Outlaw was dropped, with the cover logo "Outlaw" now referring to the replacement-feature star, Billy the Kid. The Western "all-stars" now included such historical characters as Wild Bill Hickok
, Buffalo Bill
and Davy Crockett
, in a mix of new stories and reprints, as well as DC stalwarts Pow-Wow Smith, El Diablo and Bat Lash
.
Issue #10 (Sept. 1972) introduced the enduring and popular character Jonah Hex
, created by writer John Albano
and artist Tony DeZuniga
. Hex continued as the star of the comic when it changed its name to Weird Western Tales
with issue #12 (July 1972), and he continued into issue #38 (Feb. 1977) of the 59-issue series.
and Jimmy Palmiotti
with art by Moritat. The series follows the adventures of Jonah Hex
with back-up tales featuring other Western characters.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series published by DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
, each a Western fiction
Western fiction
Western fiction is a genre of literature set in the American Old West frontier and typically set from the late eighteenth to the late nineteenth century. Well-known writers of Western fiction include Zane Grey from the early 1900s and Louis L'Amour from the mid 20th century...
omnibus featuring both continuing characters and anthological stories. The first ran from 1951 to 1961
1961 in comics
See also:1960 in comics,other events of 1961,1962 in comics,1960s in comics and thelist of years in comicsPublications: January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December-January:...
, the second from 1970
1970 in comics
This is a list of comics-related events in 1970.- Events and publications :* Denis Kitchen founds Kitchen Sink Press in Princeton, Wisconsin-January:...
to 1972
1972 in comics
-Events:* Marvel Comics forms their British publishing arm, Marvel UK .* Phil Seuling founds East Coast Seagate Distribution, developing the concept of the direct market distribution system for getting comics directly into comic book specialty shops, bypassing the established newspaper/magazine...
and the third is part of the DC New 52 released in September 2011.
Vol. 1
The original All-Star Western began with #58 (May 1951), having taken over the number of its predecessor title, All Star ComicsAll Star Comics
All Star Comics is a 1940s comic book series from All-American Publications, one of the early companies that merged with National Periodical Publications to form the modern-day DC Comics. With the exception of the first two issues, All Star Comics primarily told stories about the adventures of the...
— a superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
omnibus that years before had introduced the enduring team the Justice Society of America
Justice Society of America
The Justice Society of America, or JSA, is a DC Comics superhero group, the first team of superheroes in comic book history. Conceived by editor Sheldon Mayer and writer Gardner Fox, the JSA first appeared in All Star Comics #3 ....
. With the postwar decline in the popularity of superheroes, publisher DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
changed the series format and title. All-Star Western ran 62 bimonthly issues through #119 (July 1961). The cover logo did not include a hyphen until issue #108 (Sept. 1959), when it was much reduced in size and placed above the much larger logo for what was then the title feature, "Johnny Thunder
Johnny Thunder
Johnny Thunder is the name of three fictional characters in comics published by DC Comics. A fourth character has the variant name Jonni Thunder.It is also the name of an unrelated Lego character.-Fictional character biography:...
". Johnny Thunder remained on the cover until the final issue, #119, occasionally sharing it with Madame .44, "the masked outlaw queen."
The first issue contained the features "The Trigger Twins
Trigger Twins
The Trigger Twins are the names of two sets of fictional Western themed comic book characters published by DC Comics.-Heroes:The Trigger Twins first appear in All-Star Western #58 , the first issue of that title under its new name , and was one of the features that replaced the previous stars, the...
", created by writer Robert Kanigher
Robert Kanigher
Robert Kanigher was a prolific comic book writer and editor whose career spanned five decades. He was involved with the Wonder Woman franchise for over twenty years, taking over the scripting from creator William Moulton Marston. In addition, Kanigher spent many years in charge of DC Comics' war...
and penciler Carmine Infantino
Carmine Infantino
Carmine Infantino Carmine Infantino Carmine Infantino (born May 24, 1925, in Brooklyn, New York is an American comic book artist and editor who was a major force in the Silver Age of Comic Books...
and running through #116; "Don Caballero", drawn by Gil Kane
Gil Kane
Eli Katz who worked under the name Gil Kane and in one instance Scott Edward, was a comic book artist whose career spanned the 1940s to 1990s and every major comics company and character.Kane co-created the modern-day versions of the superheroes Green Lantern and the Atom for DC Comics, and...
, and "Roving Ranger", penciled by Alex Toth
Alex Toth
Alexander Toth was an American professional cartoonist active from the 1940s through the 1980s. Toth's work began in the American comic book industry, but is known for his animation designs for Hanna-Barbera throughout the 1960s and 1970s. His work included Super Friends, Space Ghost, The...
, the writer-creator uncredited; and "Strong Bow", created by writer David Wood and artist Frank Giacoia
Frank Giacoia
Frank Giacoia was an American comic book artist known primarily as an inker. He sometimes worked under the name Frank Ray, and to a lesser extent Phil Zupa, and the single moniker Espoia .-Early life and career:Frank Giacoia studied at Manhattan's School of...
. Other features that appeared through the years included "Super-Chief
Super-Chief
This article is about the DC Comics character. For the Major League Baseball pitcher nicknamed "Superchief" see Allie Reynolds.Super-Chief is the name of several fictional characters, three superheroes and one supervillain in the DC Comics universe. Created by Gardner Fox and Carmine Infantino, the...
", by writer Gardner Fox
Gardner Fox
Gardner Francis Cooper Fox was an American writer best known for creating numerous comic book characters for DC Comics. Comic-book historians estimate that he wrote over 4,000 comics stories....
and artist Infantino; and, beginning with #67 (Nov. 1952), "Johnny Thunder", featuring the masked, vigilante
Vigilante
A vigilante is a private individual who legally or illegally punishes an alleged lawbreaker, or participates in a group which metes out extralegal punishment to an alleged lawbreaker....
persona of a schoolteacher in an Old West Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
settlement. The character had been created by writer Kanigher and artist Toth in DC's All-American Comics
All-American Comics
All-American Comics was the flagship title of comic book publisher All-American Publications, one of the forerunners of DC Comics. It ran for 102 issues from April 1939 to October 1948, at which time it was renamed All-American Western. In 1952, the title was changed again to All-American Men of...
in 1948.
Vol. 2
1970 in comics
This is a list of comics-related events in 1970.- Events and publications :* Denis Kitchen founds Kitchen Sink Press in Princeton, Wisconsin-January:...
- May 1972
1972 in comics
-Events:* Marvel Comics forms their British publishing arm, Marvel UK .* Phil Seuling founds East Coast Seagate Distribution, developing the concept of the direct market distribution system for getting comics directly into comic book specialty shops, bypassing the established newspaper/magazine...
) before changing its title and, slightly its format to become Weird Western Tales
Weird Western Tales
Weird Western Tales is a Western genre comic book title published by DC Comics which ran from June-July 1972 to August 1980. It is perhaps best known for featuring the adventures of Jonah Hex until #38 when the character was promoted to his own eponymous series...
. All-Star Western vol. 2, #1 starred Pow-Wow Smith, scripted by John Broome
John Broome (writer)
John Broome , who additionally used the pseudonyms John Osgood and Edgar Ray Meritt, was an American comic book writer for DC Comics.-Early life and career:...
, with art by Carmine Infantino
Carmine Infantino
Carmine Infantino Carmine Infantino Carmine Infantino (born May 24, 1925, in Brooklyn, New York is an American comic book artist and editor who was a major force in the Silver Age of Comic Books...
. The next four starred the characters Outlaw and El Diablo
El Diablo (comics)
El Diablo is a name shared by several fictional characters published by DC Comics. Lazarus Lane the first El Diablo debuted in All-Star Western #2 , and was created by Robert Kanigher and Gray Morrow.-Publication history:...
. With issue #5, the character Outlaw was dropped, with the cover logo "Outlaw" now referring to the replacement-feature star, Billy the Kid. The Western "all-stars" now included such historical characters as Wild Bill Hickok
Wild Bill Hickok
James Butler Hickok , better known as Wild Bill Hickok, was a folk hero of the American Old West. His skills as a gunfighter and scout, along with his reputation as a lawman, provided the basis for his fame, although some of his exploits are fictionalized.Hickok came to the West as a stagecoach...
, Buffalo Bill
Buffalo Bill
William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody was a United States soldier, bison hunter and showman. He was born in the Iowa Territory , in LeClaire but lived several years in Canada before his family moved to the Kansas Territory. Buffalo Bill received the Medal of Honor in 1872 for service to the US...
and Davy Crockett
Davy Crockett
David "Davy" Crockett was a celebrated 19th century American folk hero, frontiersman, soldier and politician. He is commonly referred to in popular culture by the epithet "King of the Wild Frontier". He represented Tennessee in the U.S...
, in a mix of new stories and reprints, as well as DC stalwarts Pow-Wow Smith, El Diablo and Bat Lash
Bat Lash
Bartholomew "Bat" Alouysius Lash is a fictional Western character in the DC Universe. A self-professed pacifist, ladies' man, and gambler, Bat Lash's adventures have been published by DC Comics since 1968.-Character origin:...
.
Issue #10 (Sept. 1972) introduced the enduring and popular character Jonah Hex
Jonah Hex
Jonah Woodson Hex is a Western comic book antihero created by writer John Albano and artist Tony DeZuniga and published by DC Comics. Hex is a surly and cynical bounty hunter whose face is horribly scarred on the right side. Despite his poor reputation and personality, Hex is bound by a personal...
, created by writer John Albano
John Albano
John Albano was an American writer who worked in the comic book industry. He was recognized for his work with the Shazam Award for Best Writer in 1971, and the Shazam Award for Best Individual Short Story in 1972 for "The Demon Within", in House of Mystery #201 .Albano's most famous co-creation...
and artist Tony DeZuniga
Tony DeZuniga
Tony DeZuniga is a Filipino comic-book artist best known for his work for DC Comics, where he co-created the characters Jonah Hex and Black Orchid.-Early life and career:...
. Hex continued as the star of the comic when it changed its name to Weird Western Tales
Weird Western Tales
Weird Western Tales is a Western genre comic book title published by DC Comics which ran from June-July 1972 to August 1980. It is perhaps best known for featuring the adventures of Jonah Hex until #38 when the character was promoted to his own eponymous series...
with issue #12 (July 1972), and he continued into issue #38 (Feb. 1977) of the 59-issue series.
Vol. 3
The series will be revived as part of the line-wide DC comics reboot in September 2011, written by Justin GrayJustin Gray
Justin Gray is an American comic book writer published by DC Comics.-Biography:Gray has often collaborated with fellow writer Jimmy Palmiotti on series such as Hawkman, Jonah Hex, Power Girl, 21 Down, Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters and The Resistance...
and Jimmy Palmiotti
Jimmy Palmiotti
James "Jimmy" Palmiotti is an American writer and inker of comic books, who also does writing for games, television and film.-Early life:Palmiotti is a graduate of the High School of Art and Design in New York City.-Career:...
with art by Moritat. The series follows the adventures of Jonah Hex
Jonah Hex
Jonah Woodson Hex is a Western comic book antihero created by writer John Albano and artist Tony DeZuniga and published by DC Comics. Hex is a surly and cynical bounty hunter whose face is horribly scarred on the right side. Despite his poor reputation and personality, Hex is bound by a personal...
with back-up tales featuring other Western characters.