Falk, Lee
Entry updated 23 December 2023. Tagged: Artist, Author, Comics.
Name adopted by the US Comics writer and artist, theatre director and producer whose birth name was Leon Harrison Gross (1911-1999); Falk was the middle name of his stepfather. He is best known in genre circles for creating and scripting the long-running, syndicated newspaper comic strips Mandrake the Magician (first published 11 June 1934) and The Phantom (first published 17 February 1936). The latter proto-Superhero, though lacking true Superpowers, was a strong influence on the tradition of the masked crime-fighter in a skintight costume. Despite the distractions of his theatre work, Falk continued to write scripts for his two famous creations until very near the end of his life; in collaboration with Thayer Birch he scripted the late-1970s musical Mandrake the Magician and the Enchantress, with music by George Quincy.
Six Big Little Book adaptations of comics storylines appeared from Whitman Publishing Company 1936-1947, the first being The Phantom (1936). A 1970s series of Avon paperback novels starring The Phantom appeared as by Falk, though many were ghostwritten by others who were normally identified on the title page despite the cover credit "Lee Falk's Original Story". The full list of contributors is: Bruce Cassiday as Carson Bingham, Basil Copper, Lee Falk, Ron Goulart as Frank S Shawn, and Warren Shanahan. For convenience of reference all fifteen titles are listed below.
Falk's many comics-related Awards include posthumous induction into the Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame in 2013. [DRL]
see also: Charlton Comics; Defenders of the Earth; Illustration.
Lee Falk
born St Louis, Missouri: 28 April 1911
died New York: 13 March 1999
works
series
The Phantom in Big Little Books
- The Phantom (Racine, Wisconsin: Whitman Publishing Company, 1936) [adapted from comic storyline "The Singh Brotherhood": in Big Little Book format: The Phantom: hb/]
- The Phantom and the Sign of the Skull (Racine, Wisconsin: Whitman Publishing Company, 1939) [adapted from comic storyline "The Diamond Hunters": in Big Little Book format: The Phantom: hb/]
- The Phantom and Desert Justice (Racine, Wisconsin: Whitman Publishing Company, 1941) [adapted from comic storyline "The Slave Traders": in Big Little Book format: The Phantom: hb/]
- The Return of the Phantom (Racine, Wisconsin: Whitman Publishing Company, 1942) [adapted from comic storyline "Fishers of Pearls": in Big Little Book format: The Phantom: hb/]
- The Phantom and the Sky Pirates (Racine, Wisconsin: Whitman Publishing Company, 1945) [adapted from comic storyline "The Sky Band": in Big Little Book format: The Phantom: hb/]
- The Phantom and the Girl of Mystery (Racine, Wisconsin: Whitman Publishing Company, 1947) [adapted from comic storyline "The Mysterious Girl": in Big Little Book format: The Phantom: hb/]
The Phantom in Avon Books
For convenience of reference all fifteen titles, including those by other authors, are listed.
- The Story of the Phantom: The Ghost Who Walks (New York: Avon Books, 1972) [tie: #1: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- Basil Copper. The Story of the Phantom: The Slave Market of Mucar (New York: Avon Books, 1972) [tie: #2: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- Basil Copper. The Story of the Phantom: The Scorpia Menace (New York: Avon Books, 1972) [tie: #3: The Phantom: pb/]
- Ron Goulart. The Story of the Phantom: The Veiled Lady (New York: Avon Books, 1973) as by Frank S Shawn [tie: #4: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- Ron Goulart. The Story of the Phantom: The Golden Circle (New York: Avon Books, 1973) as by Frank S Shawn [tie: #5: wrongly credited to Frank S Shaw: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- The Story of the Phantom: The Mysterious Ambassador (New York: Avon Books, 1973) [tie: #6: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- Ron Goulart. The Story of the Phantom: The Mystery of the Sea Horse (New York: Avon Books, 1973) as by Frank S Shawn [tie: #7: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- Ron Goulart. The Story of the Phantom: The Hydra Monster (New York: Avon Books, 1973) as by Frank S Shawn [tie: #8: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- The Story of the Phantom: Killer's Town (New York: Avon Books, 1973) [tie: #9: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- Ron Goulart. The Story of the Phantom: The Goggle-Eyed Pirates (New York: Avon Books, 1974) as by Lee Falk [tie: #10: title page credit to Shawn omitted: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- Ron Goulart. The Story of the Phantom: The Swamp Rats (New York: Avon Books, 1974) as by Frank S Shawn [tie: #11: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- The Story of the Phantom: The Vampires and the Witch (New York: Avon Books, 1973) [tie: #12: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- Warren Shanahan. The Story of the Phantom: The Island of Dogs (New York: Avon Books, 1975) [tie: #13: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- Bruce Cassiday. The Story of the Phantom: The Assassins (New York: Avon Books, 1975) as by Carson Bingham [tie: #14: The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
- The Story of the Phantom: The Curse of the Two-Headed Bull (New York: Avon Books, 1975) [tie: #15: by Falk though wrongly credited on title page to Carson Bingham (Bruce Cassiday): The Phantom: pb/George Wilson]
links
- Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- Internet Movie Database
- The Phantom at Mystery*File
- The Phantom in Big Little Books
- Picture Gallery
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