Number 1533: I spy, with my little Eye...

“The Eye Sees” by Frank Thomas appeared for a short time in Centaur Publication’s* Keen Detective Funnies, and in a couple of reprint issues, Detective Eye. The Eye was a mysterious creature whose origin was never explained, although in one issue the splash panel proclaims, “The Eye! A symbol of the haunting voice of man’s inner conscience! That mystic all-powerful force that causes evil deeds to boomerang and destroy those who plot them!” With that sort of mystical status you’d think The Eye would be an unseen force, but it has a physical presence, as we see in this story (the second published) from Keen Detective Funnies #18 (1940) when it is spotted by one of the gang members plotting sabotage.

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*Centaur has the distinction of being a comic book company that went out of business during comics’ original heyday. According to Wikipedia, “Centaur Publications, Inc. ceased production at the end of 1940, but continued to produce comics under the name Comic Corporation of America. Centaur ceased publication four years later, primarily due to poor distribution.”

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 Here’s the first story featuring The Eye. Just click on the thumbnail:

Number 1475: Last of the Owl

Last post we had an old-time newspaper cartoonist turned comic book artist, and here we have an old-time comic book artist who ended up on a newspaper feature. Frank Thomas did several features for Dell Comics, including “Billy and Bonny Bee,” “The Eye,” and “The Owl.”

After trying superheroes for awhile Dell changed direction. I think they figured out early they wanted to get away from the long underwear characters and go into licensing and other types of comics. So Crackajack Funnies #43 (1942) had the last episode of the Owl, and that’s what I’m showing today.

But to get back to Frank Thomas...an early comic book journeyman. He died in 1968 while assisting on the “Ferd’nand” daily. Thomas was extremely talented as a writer and cartoonist, and had a very pleasing style. It’s a pity he didn’t do more comic books, and especially a pity that he died so young at age 54.

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The next to last episode, from Crackajack Funnies #42, was posted here:

Number 1271: Eye in the sky

The introduction of the Eye, by Frank Thomas, is our third posting of four in our early superhero/costumed characters comics week. It's the earliest story, having appeared in Keen Detective Funnies Volume 2 Number 4 (whole number 16), published by Centaur in 1939.

Despite inclusion in our theme week, the Eye doesn't really count as a costumed hero, although he could be said to be super. That is, if working miracles is a super power. So what was the Eye? No one knew, because he was never explained. I assume, as do some other comic historians, that the Eye was some sort of comic book version of God. He appeared for a year, until Keen Detective ceased publishing. He appeared in two issues of his own comic, then went wherever old comic book characters, including comic book gods, go.

Thomas did features like “The Owl” and “Billy and Bonny Bee.” He was a talented cartoonist and writer. I've featured him before, the post before this being this past February: Pappy's #1105.

Tomorrow, the Face.

Number 1105


Frank Thomas' Owl


I've written before of early comic book artist Frank Thomas. He did some features in early comics, including Chuck Hardy, Billy and Bonny Bee, the Eye, and the Owl. The Owl swooped into comics in Dell's Crackajack Funnies #25 in 1940, and flew off in Popular Comics #85 in 1943. The last issue of Crackajack was #43, in 1941, and the story I'm showing is from the penultimate issue, #42.

Frank Thomas' brother, Clint, contacted me some months back. I posted this episode of Chuck Hardy, with his comments on Frank in Pappy's #1016.

Number 1016


Frank Thomas' Chuck Hardy


One of the pleasures of doing this blog is hearing from the family members of comic book artists. This is an e-mail note from Frank Thomas' brother, Clint:

Pappy, Thanks so much for the Billy and Bonny Bee sequence [from Pappy's #168 and also Pappy's #299]. I'm Frank's kid brother, nine years younger. You may know Frank passed away in the sixties. He was a great cartoonist and an even greater brother. As you probably know also his last years were spent ghosting Ferd'nand.

Keep up the great blog. Mine by the way is at www.clintnmary.org and is for the family. Frank's daughter Nancy lives in Seattle and is married to Jim Bardeen, youngest son of Nobel Laureate John Bardeen.

Thanks again, Clint Thomas

In a follow-up note answering a question of mine, Clint told me Frank died in 1968 of cancer of the esophagus. He would have been only 54.

Frank Thomas was an early comic book pioneer. This particular strip, "Chuck Hardy," from Amazing-Man Comics #9, was produced in 1939. It is somewhat crude, but when Thomas went on to do his funny animal strips, like "Billy and Bonny Bee," just a few years later, his work was at a very high level, with the best of the funny animal cartoonists.