| Al Hartley | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Henry Allan Hartley (1921-10-25)October 25, 1921 Kearny, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | May 27, 2003(2003-05-27) (aged 81) Fort Myers, Florida, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Area | Writer, Artist |
Notable works | Patsy Walker |
| Awards | Inkpot Award, 1980[1] |
| Spouse | Hermine |
Henry Allan Hartley[2] (October 25, 1921 – May 27, 2003)[3] known professionally asAl Hartley, was an American comic book writer-artist known for his work onArchie Comics,Atlas Comics (the 1950s precursor ofMarvel Comics), and many Christian comics, especially under theSpire Christian Comics imprint. He received anInkpot Award at the 1980San Diego Comic-Con.
Hartley was the son ofCongressmanFrederick Allan Hartley, Jr., a New JerseyRepublican remembered in history for theTaft-Hartley Act.
Al Hartley was born inKearny, New Jersey,[4] the son of Hazel Hartley[5] andCongressmanFrederick Allan Hartley, Jr. (Republican from New Jersey), co-author of theTaft-Hartley Act of 1947.[4] He had a brother, Jack, and a sister, Lorraine.[2] Their father, Hartley said, "encouraged me. He knew I wanted to draw from the time I could hold a crayon.... My father wanted me to pursue my own dreams and never attempted to steer me in any other direction."[6] Hartley drew for the local newspaper while still in high school,[7] and studied at theArt Students League of New York.[8] He began selling humorous spot illustrations to magazines, and drew aWestern comic-book story aboutTecumseh for the publisherStreet & Smith before the U.S. joinedWorld War II, after which he enlisted in theU.S. Army Air Corps and flew 20 missions as aB-17 Flying Fortress bomber pilot in Europe.[9]
On his return, he became acommercial artist and made the rounds of comic-book publishers, quickly getting work with publisher Ned Pines'Standard Comics and its imprintsBetter Publications andNedor Publishing.[7] There he drew his first known credited work, the backup feature "Roger Dodger" inExciting Comics #51–67 (Sept. 1946 – May 1949).[10] Hartley also did humor one- and two-pagers for the publisher'sAmerica's Best Comics #20–28 (Dec. 1946 – Nov. 1948), as well as the feature "Zippie" inThe Fighting Yank, and pieces forStartling Comics andWonder Comics.[10]
During this time he also did the backup features "Debbie" and "Teen Tales" in Michel Publications'Cookie, The Funniest Kid in Town; and "Peg" forACG'sThe Kilroys. As well, his work appeared in the titlesAll Romances,Dotty,Dotty and Her Boyfriends, andVicky for A. A. Wyn, Inc.'sAce Comics.[10]
In 1949, Hartley began freelancing for editorStan Lee atTimely Comics, the progenitor ofMarvel Comics. Hartley recalled,
I'd developed enough of a reputation that it wasn't difficult to get a job at Timely in 1949. Stan Lee knew my work and hired me. When I started working with Stan, he wrote most of my stories, although I later wrote all of my own stories. We did all kinds of genres: war, Westerns, detective, science-fiction — you name it. ... We’d take a theme, and I’d illustrate the story. There were no typed scripts, just a very loose plot line. It was my job to draw the story with as much excitement, surprise, and suspense as I could. Then, Stan would write the dialogue [in the manner of what would be called the "Marvel Method"]. It's hard to put a time frame on it, but I'd guess we started working that way in the mid-1950s.[7]
As Timely segued intoAtlas Comics, Marvel's 1950s predecessor, Hartley made his mark with a more than decade-long run on thePatsy Walker teen-girl titles. With writer-editor Lee, Hartley chronicled the redheaded high schooler's lightly comic adventures inher namesake series (which ran through 1964) and in its spin-offs,Patsy and Hedy (which ran through 1967) and the single-issueA Date with Patsy (Sept. 1957). Well into the Marvel era, Hartley also drew the "Special Queen Size Annual" publicationPatsy Walker's Fashion Parade #1 (1966).[10] Walker eventually would be integrated into mainstreamMarvel Universe continuity in the 1970s as the supernatural superheroineHellcat, long after Hartley had left the character.
Also for Atlas, Hartley co-created Leopard Girl with writerDon Rico inJungle Action, and drew such features as "The Black Rider" inWild Western, and "Cliff Mason, White Hunter" inJungle Tales. Hartley drew as well for thehorror/suspense titlesMystic,Spellbound,Strange Tales,Adventures into Terror, andMystery Tales, among many other Atlas books.[10]
For Marvel in the 1960s, Hartley drew a single superhero comic: an episode of theNorse godsuperhero feature "Thor" inJourney into Mystery #90. He recalled that "superheroes weren't really my forte. I don't recall the circumstances that led me to draw that story. At that stage of the game, I was mostly doing work that I was more comfortable with, mostly teenage and humor stories."[11] Harley dabbled in Marvel scripting on two stories: the "Iron Man" feature inTales of Suspense #68 (Aug. 1965), and the last "Giant-Man" feature, inTales to Astonish #69 (July 1965).[10]
Among Marvel miscellanea, Hartley drew the 1961–63 seriesLinda Carter, Student Nurse, which began as a humor comic then became a romance with issue #2.[10] After fellow Atlas artistJoe Maneely was killed in an accident in 1958, Hartley succeeded him on writer Stan Lee'ssyndicatedcomic stripMrs. Lyon's Cubs.[4] Hartley had done a short-lived gag-panel cartoon,Suburbia, the year before.[5]
As well, he said, "There was one point in the early 1960s when I was Stan's assistant for about two months. I didn't feel comfortable in that position, so I went back to freelancing. As Stan's assistant, frankly, I did everything I normally did, and did some of the things that Stan did. I edited and wrote stories. I don't recall doing art corrections on anyone else's work."[12]
In 1967, feeling "sterile, numb, and filled with fear", Hartley became aborn again Christian, as did his wife, Hermine.[4] At the time, he was among several artists who drew the black-and-white, "nudie cutie" secret-agent feature "Pussycat"that ran in some of Marvel publisherMartin Goodman's men's magazines; Hartley told the publisher that he couldn't continue.[4]
He began writing and drawing forArchie Comics, infusing some of the stories with his Christian beliefs. At one point he was directed to cut back. "I knew God was in control, so I respected my publisher's position and naturally complied".[4] He later received a call from publisher Fleming H. Revell, for whom he then freelanced a comic-book adaptation ofDavid Wilkerson'sThe Cross and the Switchblade in 1972, quickly followed by adaptations ofGod's Smuggler by the pseudonymous Brother Andrew andThe Hiding Place byCorrie ten Boom. Inspired, Hartley helped launch theSpire Christian Comics line, and pitched Archie presidentJohn L. Goldwater to let him license the Archie characters. The Jewish Goldwater, himself religious, agreed, and Spire went on to release 59 comics – at least 19 of them Archie titles, along with six Bible stories, 12 biography adaptations, four other book or film adaptations (includingHansi: The Girl Who Loved the Swastika), and nine children's comics.
Comics writerKathleen Webb wrote,
It was Al's 'Betty's Diary' stories that intrigued me the most. He wrote a lot of them for theBetty & Me books in the early 1970s. ... Al's way of handling Betty as she shared her thoughts in her diary was with insight, humor and care. He never 'preached' in those pages; he just had Betty share her feelings, good and bad. His otherBetty & Me stories were also written well, tackling Betty's relationship withArchie carefully, never making Betty out to be so much the 'sore loser' as the 'never-give-up-gal'.[5]
Hartley wrote a 1977 memoir,Come Meet My Friend! (New Life Ventures) (F. H. Revell,ISBN 0-8007-9001-4), and a 1997 inspirational hardcover,It Takes a Family: How to Create Hope and Celebrate Your Future (Barbour Publishing, #ISBN 1-55748-946-7).
Hartley and his wife of 61 years, Hermine, had two children, Fred and Alana.[2] Hartley died May 27, 2003, aged 81, at Health Park Medical Center inFort Myers, Florida.[2][5]
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