Wally Cassell R.I.P.

Character actor Wally Cassell died on April 2 2015 at the age of 103. He appeared in the films White Heat (1949) and City That Never Sleeps (1953), and such TV shows as The Untouchables  and The Beverly Hillbillies.

Wally Cassell was born Oswaldo Castellano on March 3 1912 in Agrigento, Sicily. He was only two years old when his family moved to the United States. His first film role was an uncredited bit part as a photographer in Fingers at the Window in 1942. For the next several years he appeared in small, uncredited roles in such films as  Dr. Gillespie's New Assistant (1942), The Human Comedy (1943), Thousands Cheer (1943), Maisie Goes to Reno (1944), Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944), and National Velvet (1944). With The Thin Man Goes Home in 1945 Mr. Cassell began playing somewhat larger roles. Throughout the rest of the Forties he appeared in such films as Story of G.I. Joe (1945), The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946), Gallant Bess (1946), The Guilty (1947), Saigon (1948), Streets of San Francisco (1949), White Heat (1949), Sands of Iwo Jima (1949), and Quicksand (1950).

In the Fifties Wally Cassell appeared in such films as Little Big Horn (1951), The Wild Blue Yonder (1951), Thunderbirds (1952), City That Never Sleeps (1953), Island in the Sky (1953), Timberjack (1955), Until They Sail (1957), and I Mobster (1958). During the Fifties his career turned increasingly towards television, and he guest starred on such shows as Mr. & Mrs North, The Lone Wolf, Fireside Theatre, The Loretta Young Show, Gunsmoke, Date with the Angels, The Ann Sothern Show, The Untouchables, and Rawhide.

The Sixties saw the end of Wally Cassell's career in film and television. He appeared on the TV shows  Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond, The Blue Angels, The Case of the Dangerous Robin, 87th Precinct, and The Beverly Hillbillies. Following his appearance on The Beverly Hillbillies he retired from acting and went into business.

Wally Cassell was a very talented actor. He may be best known for his roles as a gangster in films noirs and television shows. In fact, his best known roles in both film and television may well have been gangsters. In White Heat he played Cotton Valletti, one of  Cody Jarrett's men who just happens to have a conscience. In both the pilot for The Untouchables that aired on Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse and two Untouchables episodes he played Phil D'Andrea, one of Al Capone's men.  While Mr. Cassell played several gangsters over the years, he also played a variety of other roles and did them well. In fact, in the Forties and Fifties he was often cast in the role of soldiers and sailors. He played a private several times in such films as Story of G.I. Joe (1945), Sands of Iwo Jima (1949), and Thunderbirds (1952). Over the years he played everything from police officers to Old West gunmen. In his very last role on an episode of The Beverly Hillbillies he played a front office executive for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Mr. Cassell's parts were often not very big, but he gave solid performances in nearly all of them.

"Help Me Rhonda" by The Beach Boys

It was fifty years ago today that The Beach Boys hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Help Me Rhonda".

Tanith Lee Passes On

Fantasy, horror, and science fiction writer Tanith Lee died at age 67 after a prolonged illness on May 24 2015.

Tanith Lee was born on September 18 1947 in London. Her parents were Bernard and Hylda Lee (her father was not the actor who played M in the James Bond movies), who were professional dancers. As a child she had some difficulty learning to read due to a mild form of dyslexia. Her father taught her how to read in around a month. By the time she was 9 years old she started writing. Miss Lee was drawn to the fantastic genres while young, reading the works of such authors as Theodore Sturgeon, Saki, and C. S. Lewis, as well as more mainstream authors such as Virginia Woolf.

Tanith Lee made her first professional sale when she was 21, the 90 word vignette "Eustace". It was in 1971 that her first children's book, The Dragon Hoard, was published. Her first novel, The Birthgrave, was published in 1975. It was that year that she gave up her job at a library to pursue writing full time. Tanith Lee would prove extraordinarily prolific. She wrote over 90 novels and more than 300 short stories. She also wrote in a number of different genres, including fantasy, horror, science fiction, and even historical novels. She wrote several different series of books throughout her career, including "The Birthgrave Trilogy", "The Wars of Vis", "Tales From The Flat Earth", "The Secret Books of Paradys", "The S.I.L.V.E.R. Series", and others. She became the first woman to win the British Fantasy Award for Death’s Master, the second  book in the “Tales from the Flat Earth series.

Tanith Lee also wrote two episodes of the British sci-fi TV series Blake's Seven.

Sadly, later in her career Tanith Lee had some problem selling her books. Even publishers who had previously worked with her were even unwilling to look at so much as a proposal from her. Through it all she never stopped writing and continued to publish books through smaller publishers.

Tanith Lee has been one of my favourite fantasy writers since my youth. She was so prolific that one could spend nearly a lifetime reading every single one of her works. In fact, I have to confess I have not read the majority of her books. It is not because I don't want to; it is because there are so many of them. That having been said, I particularly loved her "Tales From The Flat Earth", which numbers among my favourite fantasy series of all time. I also loved "The Birthgrave Trilogy" and "The Wars of Vis" among others.

Of course, the reason I loved Tanith Lee's work so much is that she was utterly unique. She had a lush, descriptive, and poetic style that evoked the romances of the 19th Century more than fantasy and science fiction of the 20th Century. Most of her work was based heavily in folk tales and mythology, although always with some macabre twist. In fact, many of her works seemed less like modern day fantasy novels than they did dark, twisted, and erotic versions of some fairy tales undiscovered by the Brother's Grimm. This set her apart from many of her contemporary fantasy and science fiction writers, who were often much more straight forward (and in many cases dry). It should be little wonder that over the years she won or was nominated for a number of awards. Tanith Lee was a true original.

"That'll Be the Day" by The Crickets

It was today in 1957 that the single "That'll Be the Day" by The Crickets was released. It was not the first single featuring Buddy Holly ever released. He had already released two singles, "Blue Days, Black Nights" and "Modern Day Don Juan" under his own name, Buddy Holly, on Decca. In fact, it was because he was still under contract to Decca that "That'll Be the Day"was released under the name "The Crickets" rather than "Buddy Holly"--"That'll Be the Day" was released on the Brunswick label.  While "That'll Be the Day" was not Buddy Holly's first single, it was very important nonetheless. It was not only the first single by Buddy Holly and The Crickets to chart. It was their first single to reach number one on the Billboard singles chart. Neither of Buddy Holly's first two singles had charted.

As to the song itself, "That'll Be the Day" was written by Buddy Holly and Jerry Allison (the drummer for The Crickets). It took its title from a line used by John Wayne as Ethan Edwards repeatedly in the movie The Searchers, "That'll be the day." Here it must be noted that The Searchers would not only inspire the song "That'll Be the Day" by The Crickets. The film's title would would also serve as the inspiration for the name of British Invasion era Liverpudlian band The Searchers.

Here, then, is "That'll Be the Day" by The Crickets

The Late Great Anne Meara

Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara

Anne Meara, who formed one half of the comedy team of  Stiller and Meara with her husband Jerry Stiller, and appeared as an actress in television, on film, and on stage, died May 23 2025 at the age of 85. She was the mother of writer Amy Stiller and actor Ben Stiller.

Anne Meara was born in Brooklyn on September 20 1929. She grew up in Rockville Centre on Long Island. Her mother committed suicide when Miss Meara was only eleven years old. She studied for a year at the  Dramatic Workshop at The New School in Manhattan before beginning her acting career in summer stock in 1948.

It was in 1953 that Anne Meara met Jerry Stiller. The two married not long after, but it would be some time before they would begin working together as a comedy team. In 1954 Anne Meara made her television debut on the short lived soap opera The Greatest Gift in 1954. That same year she appeared on an episode of The Philco Television Playhouse. Later in the Fifties she guest starred on the show The DuPont Show of the Month and a television production of Ninotchka. Anne Meara also appeared on Broadway in the Fifties. She made her debut on Broadway in a revival of A Month in the Country in 1956. She also appeared in The Good Woman of Setzuan and Miss Lonelyhearts.

While Anne Meara had not considered comedy, her husband Jerry Stiller persuaded her to become one half of a comedy team with him. She consented because work was hard to find at the time. The two of them joined The Compass Players, the legendary comedy troupe which over the years had boasted  Theodore J. Flicker, Nichols and May, and others as members. Eventually they left The Compass Players to strike out on their own as the comedy team of Stiller and Meara. Among their best known comedy routines was an entire series involving the relationship between Hershey Horowitz, a short Jewish man, and Mary Elizabeth Doyle, a tall Catholic woman, who met and fell in love. By 1961 Stiller and Meara were playing nightclubs in New York City. By 1962 they were one of the biggest comedy teams around.

Stiller and Meara appeared on most of the major variety shows and talk shows of the Sixties. Stiller and Meara made their debut as a comedy team on an edition of The Merv Griffin Show in 1962. Throughout the Sixties they appeared on such variety shows and talk shows as The Ed Sullivan Show, The Danny Kaye Show, Today, The Mike Douglas Show, The Skitch Henderson Show, and The Tonight Show. Stiller and Meara provided voices for episodes of the classic Saturday morning cartoon Linus the Lion Hearted. They guest starred on the TV show That's Life and appeared in the film. Anne Meara appeared without Ben Stiller on The Summer Brothers Smothers Show and The Engelbert Humperdinck Show, and the film The Out of Towners (1970).

In the Seventies Stiller and Meara appeared on such variety and talk shows as The Kraft Music Hall, Flip, The Tonight Show, The Carol Burnett Show, The Mike Douglas Show, and Tony Orlando and Dawn. They appeared on the game show Hollywood Squares. Stiller & Meara guest starred on the shows Love, American Style; The Courtship of Eddie's Father; The Paul Lynde Show; Time Express; and The Love Boat. They had recurring roles on Rhoda. They appeared in the film Nasty Habits (1977). Without Jerry Stiller, Anne Meara played the lead on the crime drama Kate McShane and was a regular on the TV shows The Corner Bar and Archie Bunker's Place. Without Jerry Stiller, Anne Meara guest starred on the shows Medical Centre and Temperatures Rising. Anne Meara appeared on her own in the films Irish Whiskey Rebellion (1972) The Boys from Brazil (1978), and Fame (1980).

In the Eighties Stiller and Meara appeared in the unsold pilot The Stiller and Meara Show. They guest starred on the shows The Love Boat, Breakaway, Saturday Night Live, and Monsters. Without her husband Anne Meara appeared in a regular role on Alf. She appeared in the films The Longshot (1986), The Perils of P.K. (1986), My Little Girl (1986), That's Adequate (1989),  and Awakenings (1990). She appeared on Broadway in Eastern Standard.

In the Nineties Stiller and Meara appeared in the films Highway to Hell (1991), Reality Bites (1994), Heavy Weights (1995), A Fish in the Bathtub (1999), The Independent (2000), and Chump Change (2000). They appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Anne Meara guest starred several times on her husband Jerry Stiller's TV show King of Queens. Without her husband she guest starred on Murder, She Wrote; In the Heat of the Night; Good Advice; Murphy Brown; Homicide: Life on the Street; and All My Children. She appeared on her own in the films Through an Open Window (1992), The Search for One-eye Jimmy (1994), Kiss of Death (1995), The Daytrippers (1996), Southie (1998), The Thin Pink Line (1998), Judy Berlin (1999), The Diary of the Hurdy-Gurdy Man (1999), and Brooklyn Thrill Killers (1999). She appeared on Broadway in Anna Christie.

In the Naughts Stiller and Meara appeared on the game show Hollywood Squares, on the show Sex and the City, and in the film Zoolander (2001), which starred their son Ben Stiller. From the Naugths through the Teens, without her husband,  Anne Meara appeared in the films Get Well Soon (2001), Like Mike (2002), The Yard Sale (2002), Crooked Lines (2003), Night at the Museum (2006), When the Evening Comes (2009), The Queen of Greenwich Village (2009), and Simpler Times (2014). She guest starred on such shows as Oz; Good Morning, Miami; Charlie Lawrence; Four Kings; Gravity; and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

Anne Meara was an incredibly talented actress. Stiller and Meara were considered one of the hottest comedy teams of the early Sixties, and with good reason. They were very, very funny. Their routines centred around the universal theme of male and female relationships, and the differences and similarities between the two sexes. Even without Jerry Stiller, Anne Meara could be very funny, as shown by her roles in various comedy TV shows and films over the years. At the same time, however, Anne Meara was also very talented when it came to playing drama. She was a woman who could guest star on both Murphy Brown  Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and do both well. Both as part of Stiller and Meara and as a actress on her own, then, Anne Meara will be remembered.

Voice Artist John Stephenson Passes On

John Stephenson, who provided the voice for Dr. Benton Quest on the first few episodes of Jonny Quest and Fred Flintstone's boss Mr. Slate on The Flintstones, died on May 15 1015 at the age of 91.

John Stephenson was born on August 9 1923 in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He attended  Ripon College in Ripon, Wisconsin and then studied law at  the University of Wisconsin. During World War II he served in the United States Army Air Forces, as a gunner and radio operator. Following World War II he earned a Master's degree in Speech and Drama from Northwestern University.

John Stephenson made his television debut on an episode of My Little Margie in 1953. During the Fifties he appeared frequently on television, guest starring on such shows as I Led 3 Lives, The Lone Ranger, The Loretta Young Show, Dragnet, Science Fiction Theatre, The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show, The Millionaire, Bonanza, Perry Mason, The Real McCoys, and Dobie Gillis. He made his film debut in Day of Triumph in 1954. He was a regular on the shows Treasury Men in Action and People's Choice. During the Fifties he appeared in such films as The Looters (1955), I Died a Thousand Times (1955), Teenage Rebel (1956), The Night Runner (1957), and The Careless Years (1957). He did his first voice work in cartoons as the narrator on the Hanna-Barbera TV series The Ruff & Reddy Show.

The Sixties saw John Stephenson doing primarily voice work. He was the voice of Dr. Benton Quest for the first few episodes of Jonny Quest and the voice of Mr. Slate on The Flintstones and its various sequels and spinoff into the Naughts. He was also the voice of Fancy-Fancy on Top Cat and Blubber Bear on Wacky Races. He also did voice work such cartoons as The Atom Ant Show, The Secret Squirrel Show, Samson and Goliath, The Banana Splits Adventure Hour, and The Peter Potamus Show. He was the narrator on the Sixties version of Dragnet and did various voices for the 1966, live action TV show Batman. He guest starred on such shows as The Eleventh Hour, The Bill Dana Show, The Beverly Hillbillies, F Troop, Get Smart, Hogan's Heroes, and Gomer Pyle: USMC.  He appeared in the film Hellfighters (1968) and Topaz (1969).


In the Seventies John Stephenson did voice work for such cartoons as Help!... It's the Hair Bear Bunch!, Sealab 2020, Wait Till Your Father Gets Home, Jeannie, Super Friends, and The Fantastic Four.  He provided the voice of Farmer Arable in the film Charlotte's Web (1973). He guest starred on such TV shows as McMillan & Wife, The Six Million Dollar Man, The Streets of San Francisco, and Lou Grant. He appeared in the film Herbie Rides Again (1974).

In the Eighties Mr. Stephenson did voice work on such cartoons as Inspector Gadget, G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, The Incredible Hulk, Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, The Littles, Galaxy High School, InHumanoids, and Bionic Six. Since the Nineties John Stephenson only worked occasionally, such as providing voices for an episode of Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, a video game based on Wacky Races, and, of course, Mr. Slate in various Flintstones projects.

John Stephenson certainly had a talent for voice work. Indeed, he was extremely versatile. No better proof of this can be offered than the fact that the same man was the narrator on the Sixties version of Dragnet, Fancy-Fancy on Top Cat, and Blubber Bear on Wacky Races. Few voice artists could play a hillbilly bear, be an authoritative narrator on a police procedural, and play Fred Flintstone's boss. John Stephenson was just that talented.

Green Lantern's 75th Anniversary

"In brightest day, in blackest night,
No evil shall escape my sight.
Let those who worship evil's might
Beware my power--Green Lantern's light!"
(the Green Lantern Oath)

It is often difficult to determine the date that specific Golden Age comic books hit the newsstands. The cover date of any given Golden Age comic book is somewhat useless, as comic books at the time were published a month and a half to two months prior to their cover date.  According to Comic Vine it was on May 21 1940 that All-American Comics #16 (July 1940) hit newsstands. Comic Vine does not provide a source for this date, but there is little reason to doubt it. Even if All-American Comics #16 was not first published on May 21 1940, given its cover date of July 1940 it would have been very close to that date.

As to why All-American Comics #16 matters at all, it is because it marked the first appearance of the original Green Lantern, Alan Scott. All-American Comics was the flagship title of All-American Publications, a company that grew out of National Allied Publications (publisher of Superman) and Detective Comics Inc. (publisher of Detective Comics, the home of Batman). The company was founded by Max Gaines, who had played a large role in the creation of the very first American comic book, and Jack Liebowitz, who with Harry Donenfeld was co-owner of  National Allied Publications and Detective Comics Inc. All-American Company was then very much a sister company to National Allied Publications and Detective Comics Inc., to the point that the companies cross-promoted their various characters and all of them were published under the DC imprint. It should come as no surprise, then, that All-American Publications was one of the companies that would become the modern day DC Comics.

As to Green Lantern himself, he was Alan Scott, an engineer for a railway company. Scott's company had beat out another company in a bid to build a bridge. Unfortunately, the owner of the rival company did not take this well at all. He planted explosives under the bridge so that they would detonate with the first train to go over the bridge. When Scott's company sent a train across the bridge, then, there was a huge explosion. Everyone aboard the train was killed, save Alan Scott. Scott's life was saved by a green train lantern made of some unknown metal. To make a long story short, the lantern told Scott to remove a bit of its metal to make a ring. By touching the ring to the lantern every 24 hours, the ring would have the power of the lantern's magic green flame. The lantern's green flame was a very potent weapon. With it, Scott could fly, create various objects using the flame, fire bursts of energy, deflect attacks, and so on. Its only weakness was that was ineffective against wood (this at a time when superheroes rarely had weaknesses--it would be several years before Kryptonite would be introduced into the Superman mythos).

The idea for Green Lantern originated with comic book artist Martin Nodell, who would later leave comic books for advertising (he would be part of the team that created the Pillsbury Doughboy).  Martin Nodell had began his comic book career in 1938 as a freelance artist. It was in 1940 that he was working for editor Sheldon Mayer at All-American Publications. All-American had only recently entered the field of superheroes in a rather spectacular way, publishing the first issue of Flash Comics (January 1940). Flash Comics #1 introduced such legendary characters as The Flash and Hawkman. It was then natural that Mr. Nodell wanted to create his own superhero. For him inspiration came on a day in January 1940 at the 34th Street subway station in Manhattan, where he saw a trainman waving a lantern along a darkened line of track. As to the inspiration for Green Lantern's power ring, that came from Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen.

Editor Sheldon Mayer was not particularly taken with Martin Nodell's creation. He felt that Mr. Nodell's  drawing was "crude", but he went ahead and sent Mr. Nodell to see publisher Max C. Gaines. Fortunately, Mr. Gaines gave his approval to the new character. Sheldon Mayer then brought writer Bill Finger into work with Martin Nodell. Bill Finger was already an established name in the comic book business. Indeed, among other things he was responsible for co-creating Batman with artist Bob Kane and writing the bulk of that character's early stories. Bill Finger rewrote the origin that Martin Nodell had initially provided the character.

Particularly in the early years Green Lantern would undergo several changes. An engineer for a railroad company in his origin, Alan Scott would be established as working for a radio station for the rest of the character's run. Initially Alan Scott worked for a radio station called Apex. This would eventually be changed to WMCG with Green Lantern #12 (June 1944). With Green Lantern #20 (June 1946) it would change again, this time to WXYZ. Even Green Lantern's base of operations would change over time. Initially he was based in Capitol City, although it was not long before he moved to Gotham City, the hometown of the superhero Batman. Curiously, except in the pages of All-Star Comics (featuring the Justice Society of America), Batman and Green Lantern never crossed paths.

Green Lantern would eventually pick up a sidekick, not to mention comic relief, in the form of Doiby Dickles. Doiby was a taxi cab driver with a Brooklyn accent who helped Green Lantern on a case, which soon led to his position as the superhero's sidekick. Doiby first appeared in  All-American Comics #27 (June 1941) and was created by writer Bill Finger and artist Irwin Hasen. Green Lantern and Doiby were inseparable for a time, with Alan Scott and Doiby even enlisting in the United States Army (after which they spent several issues doing special missions for the government).

Even the iconic Green Lantern Oath (quoted above) would change over time. For those unfamiliar with the Green Lantern mythos, when Alan Scott (as well as every Green Lantern since) recharged his power ring, he would recite an oath. The original oath that appeared in Green Lantern's origin in All-American Comics #16 was very basic, "and I shall shed my light over dark evil. For the dark things cannot stand the light, The light of the Green Lantern!" The oath would soon change, with two different versions alone appearing in Green Lantern #5 (fall 1942) alone. Several more versions of the oath would appear before in Green Lantern #9 (October 1943) there finally appeared a familiar variant of the Green Lantern Oath as we know it, "In brightest day, in darkest night,/No evil shall escape my sight./Let those who worship evil's might/Beware my power--Green Lantern's light!" This version of the oath also appeared not long afterwards in Comics Cavalcade #53 (December 1943). Other oaths would still appear for a time and the words "darkest night" would become "blackest night" in short order, but this version became the established Green Lantern Oath and has remained so ever since. As to who wrote the classic Green Lantern Oath, it has often been credited to science fiction writer Alfred Bester. Mr. Bester always denied writing the oath, but then the first several stories in which the oath appeared were written by Alfred Bester.

The nature of Green Lantern's opponents would also change over time. In the earliest stories Green Lantern faced off against common gangsters. With the advent of World War II he often found himself battling Nazis. Despite this it would not be long before Green Lantern found himself battling supervillains. In fact, Alan Scott may have had the best rogue's gallery of the Golden Age outside of Batman. The first supervillain Green Lantern faced may also be his most famous opponent: Vandal Savage, who first appeared in Green Lantern #10 (winter 1943/1944).  Vandal Savage had originated as a caveman in 50,000 BCE who found himself exposed to radiation from a mysterious meteorite. Afterwards he not only found himself to possess a vast intellect, but to be immortal as well. He claimed to be various historical personages over the years, from Cheops to Alexander the Great to Genghis Khan. Regardless of his claims, he was most definitely dangerous. He not only fought Green Lantern, but as part of the Injustice Society he fought the Justice Society of America as well. He would make his first appearance in the Silver Age in The Flash #137 (June 1963) and has remained one of DC Comics' most high profile villains ever since.

Of course, Alan Scott would have other notable opponents besides Vandal Savage. Aside from Vandal Savage, the most famous villain he ever faced may well be Solomon Grundy. Solomon Grundy was a man who had been murdered in Slaughter Swamp outside Gotham City. Fifty years after his murder his corpse was reanimated as a monstrous creature a group of hobos call "Solomon Grundy" after the famous nursery rhyme. Solomon Grundy first appeared in All-American Comics #61 (October 1944). Like Vandal Savage, he was revived in the Silver Age and has been an important character in DC Comics ever since. Among the other supervillians Green Lantern faced were: The Gambler (a master thief and expert knife thrower);  the Sky Pirate (a modern day buccaneer who uses an airship for transportation); The Sportsmaster (a former athlete who used sports themed gadgetry); Harlequin (Alan Scott's secretary who pretty much became a supervillain just to get Green Lantern's attention); and The Icicle (a scientist who developed a gun that could  freeze the moisture in the air--this well before the Silver Age Flash's archenemy Captain Cold).

Throughout the years several notable artists would work on the Green Lantern feature.  Sheldon Moldoff, best known for his work on Hawkman and Batman, provided several Green Lantern covers. Joe Kubert, who worked on The Flash, Hawkman, and later Sgt. Rock, also provided covers for the character.  E.E. Hibbard, best known for his work on The Flash, provided covers and artwork for stories. Among the artists most closely associated with Green Lantern was the legendary Irwin Hasen, who co-created Wildcat and would go onto co-create the comic strip Dondi. Irwin Hasen drew a much more dynamic Alan Scott than many other artists. When he drew Alan Scott throwing a punch, the reader could feel it. Another legendary artist closely associated with Green Lantern was Alex Toth. Alex Toth drew Alan Scott in such a way that one could actually believe the character could fly.

Green Lantern would prove to be one of All-American Publications' most popular characters, perhaps surpassed only by The Flash and Wonder Woman. He received his own title with Green Lantern #1 (fall 1941). He appeared in All-Star Comics and in All-Star Comics #3 was one of the founding members of the Justice Society of America, the first superhero team in the history of comic books. He was also one of the characters featured in Comic Cavalcade (the first issue was cover dated December 1942), which  featured All-American's most popular characters: The Flash, Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman. There was a point during the Golden Age that Green Lantern appeared in four different publications: All-American Comics, Green Lantern, All-Star Comics, and Comic Cavalcade.

While Green Lantern was a founding member of the Justice Society of America, he would be absent from the feature for part of the Forties. It was a policy at the time that once a character received his own title, he would no longer appear as part of the Justice Society of America. Having received his own title, Green Lantern, Green Lantern stopped appearing in All Star Comics with issue #7 (October-November 1941). Green Lantern returned to the Justice Society of America in All Star Comics, #24 (spring 1945) and remained in the feature until it ended with All-Star Comics #57 (March 1951).

Unfortunately following the end of World War II superhero comic books would begin to decline in popularity. To help bolster the popularity of Green Lantern he was given a canine sidekick in the form of Streak the Wonder Dog with Green Lantern #30 (Feb.–March 1948). Eventually Streak would begin to overshadow Green Lantern and even outlived the Green Lantern feature, with Streak's adventures continuing to appear in Sensation Comics until issue #93 (September 1949) of that title. Slowly but surely Green Lantern began disappearing from the pages of comic books. All-American Comics would shift to a Western format as All-American Western with issue  #103 (November 1948), after which Green Lantern no longer appeared in its pages. Comic Cavalcade would switch to a funny animal format with issue  #30 (December–January 1948). Green Lantern's own title would be cancelled with issue #38 (May–June 1949). By the end of the Forties Alan Scott only continued to appear as a member of the Justice Society of America in the pages of All-Star Comics, making one last appearance with issue #57 (March 1951).

Fortunately, Alan Scott would not remain gone forever. In 1956 editor Julius Schwartz assigned writer Robert Kanigher and artist Carmine Infantino to create a new version of The Flash. This new version of The Flash first appeared in n  Showcase #4, October 1956. He proved such a rousing success that Julius Schwartz decided there should be a new version of another Golden Age character, namely Green Lantern. Like The Flash, this version of Green Lantern was entirely different from the Golden Age version. Instead of Alan Scott, the new Green Lantern was test pilot Hal Jordan, who is given a power ring and a lantern by the dying alien Abin Sur, a member of the Green Lantern Corps. Like the Silver Age version of The Flash, this version of Green Lantern would also prove successful.

While the Silver Age versions of The Flash and Green Lantern were successful, many long time readers wanted to see the Golden Age versions of the characters again. The Golden Age version of The Flash (Jay Garrick) would make his first appearance in the Silver Age in The Flash #123 (September 1961 ). It was with Jay Garrick's next appearance that Alan Scott would make his first appearance in the Silver Age, although only in flashback as part of the Justice Society of America, in The Flash #129 (June 1962). Alan Scott would finally appear in the present, although as part of the Justice Society of America, in The Flash #137 (June 1963), which was also the first Silver Age appearance of Vandal Savage. Alan Scott, the Golden Age Green Lantern, would first meet Hal Jordan, the Silver Age Green Lantern, in Green Lantern volume 2, #40 (October 1965). Alan Scot would make regular appearances in comic books during the Silver Age and in the Seventies, both in the pages of Green Lantern and as part of the Justice Society of America in their regular team ups with the Justice League of America.

Since that time Alan Scott has appeared in various comic books over the years. He appeared as part of the Justice Society of America in the short lived revival of All Star Comics in the Seventies.  He also appeared in issues of All-Star Squadron, a comic book set in World War II, in the Eighties. He appeared in various revivals of the Justice Society of America through the years, including the short lived Justice Society of America in the Nineties and the somewhat more successful JSA and Justice Society of America in the Naughts as well. For a time in the Naughts he went under the name "Sentinel", but he returned to the name "Green Lantern" soon enough.

For much of my life Alan Scott has been my favourite Green Lantern. While I will admit his costume is outlandish (it was bizarre even by Golden Age standards), I always found the idea of someone finding a magic lantern more appealing than belonging to an intergalactic police force. At any rate, the Golden Age Green Lantern did play an important role in comic book history. He was one of the first superheroes with a weakness, his ring's ineffectiveness against wood pre-dating Superman's Kryptonite by a few years. Along with The Flash and Wonder Woman, Green Lantern was one of the most popular characters at All-American Publications. As a result he was one of the founding members of the Justice Society of America, the first superhero team in comic book history. Two of Alan Scott's archenemies, Vandal Savage, and Solomon Grundy, would become important characters at DC Comics, making several appearances beyond their battles with Green Lantern.

Of course, it must be pointed out that had Alan Scott never been created, then the Silver Age Green Lantern, Hal Jordan, would never have been created either. While the second version of The Flash sparked the Silver Age, it was in part the success of the second version of Green Lantern that would insure it took place. While Alan Scott may not be as well known as Hal Jordan, let alone such big names as Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, he did play a very important role in the history of comic books.