Keith Dallas and I have some great history, having worked together at Silverbulletcomicbooks.com (now ComicsBulletin.com) for a few years. Dallas was (and is) one of the nicest guys I’ve met in my travels through the comic book journalism dog and pony show. I consider myself fortunate to have get to do some mild copy-editing (once Dallas writes or edits something, there’s not much to edit to be honest) on his new book, The Flash Companion. Described by publisher TwoMorrows Publishing as detailing “the publication histories of the four heroes who have individually earned the right to be declared DC Comics’ “Fastest Man Alive”: Jay Garrick, Barry Allen, Wally West, and Bart Allen. With articles about legendary creators SHELLY MAYER, GARDNER FOX, E.E. HIBBARD, JULIUS SCHWARTZ, ROBERT KANIGHER, JOHN BROOME, ROSS ANDRU, IRV NOVICK and all new interviews of HARRY LAMPERT, CARMINE INFANTINO, CARY BATES, ALEX SAVIUK, MIKE W. BARR, MARV WOLFMAN, MIKE BARON, JACKSON GUICE, MARK WAID, SCOTT KOLINS, among others, THE FLASH COMPANION recounts the scarlet speedster’s evolution from the Golden Age to the 21st century. Also featured are “lost covers,” never before published commission pieces by Flash artists throughout the decades, a ROGUES GALLERY detailing The Flash’s most famous foes, a tribute to late artist MIKE WIERINGO by Mark Waid, a look at the speedster’s 1990s TV show, and “Flash facts” detailing pivotal moments in Flash history.” I was really excited to get a chance to interview my old pal, Keith, and I hope you enjoy our email exchange.
Tim O’Shea: In listening to the TwoMorrows podcast interview, I was interested to hear that, while the book covers Jay Garrick, Barry Allen, Wally West and Bart Allen as well as the Rogues Gallery, you admit there was some of the book that had to be edited out for space. How did you go about deciding what ended up in the book and what was the hardest aspect to trim out of the book?
Keith Dallas: When I pitched The Flash Companion to John Morrow [TwoMorrows' publisher], I gave him a detailed outline of all the Flash material (articles, interviews, sidebars) that I wanted the book to include. When you think about the publication history of The Flash, there is a lot of “no-brainer” material, like spotlights on Carmine Infantino, John Broome, Julius Schwartz, Cary Bates, Mark Waid, etc., etc.
Given that, the final table of contents mostly resembles my initial outline with some notable additions and only a few omissions because, yeah, I ran out of pages near deadline.
I got lucky though in that (1) the material that didn’t make the book (including an article about artist Don Heck and a brief interview with Ethan Van Sciver about the creation of the Flash villain Murmur) hadn’t actually been written and (2) all the material that HAD been written got included in the book. Ultimately though, yes, there was material that I had planned on including but that didn’t make it into The Flash Companion.
O’Shea: In the book, you point to the death of Iris Allen as a major turning point for the book. Do you think DC ever considered killing the character a mistake on then editor Ross Andru’s part?
Dallas: No, I don’t think DC’s Powers That Be ever regretted the death of Iris for the simple fact that Iris’ death had improved sales of The Flash for at least for a good year or two. In fact, according to then-Flash writer Cary Bates, the very reason why Iris was killed off was to give the title a sales boost.
In my opinion, the death of Iris Allen is one of the most transformative events in Flash publication history, and arguably THE most transformative event of the Barry Allen volume. During editor Julius Schwartz’s tenure on the book, The Flash’s life was pretty static: from 1956 to 1979 he always had the same job as a Central City Police Department scientist, he was always fighting his Rogues Gallery, and he was always romantically attached to Iris West. (And by “static” I do NOT mean “unentertaining” or “boring”; I love Julie’s era of Flash stories). There was very little change in Barry Allen’s life…
Until Ross Andru replaced Julius Schwartz as editor of The Flash in 1979 (Julie had become editor of all the Superman titles) and decided the best way to boost sales on the title was to give Barry’s life an upheaval, so he and Bates made the bold decision to kill off Iris. With her death, the title was permanently changed, both in story dynamic and tone. I mean, for obvious reasons, Barry Allen’s life became a mess. In the letter columns one reader even complained that the creators had turned Barry Allen into Peter Parker!
But the editorial decision was a success, at least from a sales standpoint.
O’Shea: How hard was it to research the editing choices in that era, given that Andru died in 1993?
Dallas: Because we were able to interview the other Flash creators who worked under Andru (Bates, artist Alex Saviuk, assistant editor Mike Barr), I think we were able to obtain (and provide) an accurate sense of Andru’s editing style and decisions.
O’Shea: These types of books are great for the behind the scenes kind of stories that you uncover. In talking with Flash’s writers and artists, what “here is what we intended to do” or “we almost did this” revelations really surprised you to learn?
Dallas: I wish Marv Wolfman kept notes about “Mackenzie Ryan,” the character who almost became the new Flash after Crisis on Infinite Earths. It would have been really cool to have a record of what Wolfman and [co-creator] Len Wein had intended for that character.
I guess the revelation that surprised me the most though had to do with creator assignments rather than story plots. I was most surprised to learn that in 2001 not only was Scott Kolins attached to The Flash BEFORE Geoff Johns but that Kolins was originally teamed with Jerry Ordway as The Flash creative team. Ordway was slated to write The Flash with Kolins providing pencils. According to Kolins, when Ordway bowed out of the assignment (for reasons Ordway wouldn’t elaborate), Kolins campaigned for Geoff Johns to become the new writer. I never knew that. Because Geoff Johns’ first Flash arc (“Wonderland”, Flash #164-9) was published before Kolins became the regular Flash artist (with issue #170), I always assumed that Johns was attached to the title first. Little did I know that Kolins actually helped Johns get the Flash assignment.
O’Shea: With your in-depth knowledge of the Flash books, looking at how Bart Allen was mishandled when he became Flash, can you speculate (on what went wrong)?
Dallas: The following may speak for itself: no creator associated with the launch of Flash: The Fastest Man Alive would speak with me on the record about their work on the book. That’s telling. One TFMA creator said to me, “I’m trying to put that experience behind me. I’d rather not relive it by telling you about it.”
So what went wrong? And who’s to blame?
I’ll say this: I think Danny Bilson and Paul DeMeo are very good writers. I think Ken Lashley is an excellent artist. And I think Joan Hilty has proven herself a capable editor. Each one of them has distinguished him/herself on many other projects.
So perhaps the four of them just don’t “gel” together…
Or perhaps the blame lies with someone else. In the book Mark Waid provides some illuminating thoughts about the matter.
It’s a shame because Bart was such a fun, fun character. Such a breath of fresh air. But “maturing” him into The Flash was ill-conceived if you ask me. It just stripped him of all the qualities that made him unique and appealing.
O’Shea: To the Wally generation of Flash fans, Bart was not greeted much as Wally when he replaced Barry. Looking back at when Wally took the mantle, do you think Wally replacing Barry would have made it past issue #12 if the Internet had existed?
Dallas: Great question. I was a college freshman when the Wally West volume launched, and I loved it! I thought [writer] Mike Baron, [artist] Butch Guice and [editor] Mike Gold did a fantastic job creating a completely different Flash comic book, which is what DC’s Powers That Be ordered them to do. They didn’t want “Barry Allen Redux,” and that’s certainly not what was published. Wally was such a wonderfully immature, insecure ego-maniac back then.
But I know a lot of readers despised the new Flash title and how Wally was depicted. In that dawning era of AIDS awareness in the late 1980s, some readers even argued that the Flash creators were socially irresponsible in their depiction of Wally as a sexually active male.
To answer your question though, I don’t believe that “internet chatter” has much impact on a title’s sales. I’m a very active messageboard poster, but I don’t feel that comic book messageboards accurately indicate what comic book consumers are enjoying or not enjoying. There are comic book writers who have their own messageboard forums and have cultivated a devoted internet fanbase… yet their titles don’t sell particularly well. On the flip side, think of the creators and comic book titles that get continually bashed on the messageboards… yet they still sell very well.
O’Shea: What was the hardest era or aspect of Flash history to research?
Dallas: Undoubtedly, the Golden Age era, not only because nearly all the Golden Age professionals have passed away but also because we know very little about so many of them. We know a lot about writers Gardner Fox and Bob Kanigher because their comic book careers spanned decades. But as far as Golden Age artists go, we need to remember that during the 1940s and 1950s most of them really aspired to be syndicated newspaper strip artists. That’s where the real money was. Therefore, writing a profile of… say… Hal Sharp, who drew many Jay Garrick Flash Comics adventures, becomes really difficult.
After contributor John Wells submitted his article on Gardner Fox, I asked him, “You ready for a true challenge? How about writing an article about [Golden Age artist] E.E. Hibbard?” And God bless him, John came through with an interesting, informative piece.
O’Shea: Talk a little bit about the contributors to the book. In addition to your writing, you have folks like Jim Beard and John Wells onboard. Both are quite knowledgeable about DC history, particularly Wells. Was the project more fun given the things you learned about the history from folks like them?
Dallas: My contributors definitely made The Flash Companion a more fun project, and they definitely made it a more accurate project. I truly cannot heap enough praise on them. They not only did a great job on their individual assignments, but they did a great job encouraging and helping each other. I couldn’t have done this book without them.
Well, I guess I could have done it, but it would have sucked.
O’Shea: Looking at the advance press of the book, it looks like you got a great deal of input from Mark Waid, including his tribute to Mike Wieringo.
Dallas: Yeah, Mark was great! He provided us with scans of some unpublished Flash covers from the early 1980s, he wrote that wonderful tribute to Wieringo, and he made himself available for several (lengthy) interviews.
When I approached Mark at the 2007 Baltimore Comic Con, he told me he was really looking forward to reading The Flash Companion. At the time I thought Mark was just being kind and encouraging. In actuality, he really was really eager to read The Flash Companion, so much so that when the book debuted at July’s San Diego Comic Con, Mark came over to the TwoMorrows booth and asked to buy a copy. John Morrow reminded Mark that I had already promised him a free copy that he would receive in the mail in a couple of weeks. Mark responded, “You don’t understand. I need to read this book tonight.” This occurred on the first night of the convention.
When I saw Mark the next night at the bar, I asked for his feedback. He said my contributors and I did a great job providing an entertaining, comprehensive history of The Flash. I was very thrilled… and I was very relieved. I mean if the book can’t satisfy such a life-long Flash fan as Mark, what good is it?
So not only does The Flash Companion prominently spotlight Mark’s contributions to Flash history, it comes with his seal of approval.
O’Shea: Other than Waid, what writers or artists were most helpful in compiling the book?
Dallas: Let’s see. Scott Kolins provided us with scans of a lot of Flash original art from his time on the title. Alex Saviuk did as well. I thought Mike Barr provided a great interview, and I appreciate Danny Bilson and Paul DeMeo letting me talk to them for so many hours about their Flash television show.
I’m perhaps most grateful for Cary Bates and Carmine Infantino’s participation. Let’s face it: Bates and Infantino are on the Mount Rushmore of Flash creators. Without their participation, The Flash Companion is a very diminished tome… and perhaps one that wouldn’t be worth publishing.
O’Shea: On a Waid related note, I’m really surprised that no one ever brought Max Mercury back to the mix of things (other than that Infinite Crisis cameo…). In compiling the book, did you gain an affinity for any of the other non-Flash speeders that popped up in the Flash books-like Johnny Quick?
Dallas: Not really, but only because I was so focused on The Flash himself. I read All Star Squadron as a kid in the early 1980s, and Johnny Quick was one of my favorite characters in that series.
O’Shea: Promotion for this book has come about in rather unique way, a few bloggers (including myself) latched onto Mike Baron’s admission of writing Flash while on cocaine. Were you surprised at how much attention that particular aspect gained?
Dallas: No, I would have been shocked if Baron’s admission didn’t get attention. That was interview gold, if you ask me.
I still have the audio tape from that interview. When Baron admitted his coke problem, you can hear me drop my pen on my desk! I was stunned! From what I understand though, Baron has previously discussed his drug problems, but it certainly caught me off guard.
O’Shea: How did you score a cover from Don Kramer for the book?
Dallas: Don is one of my best friends. We talk on the phone every week. As great an artist as Don is, he’s an even greater person.
John [Morrow] told me I needed to secure a cover for The Flash Companion well in advance of the publication date, like over a year beforehand because he had to solicit the book to the book retailers that far in advance. It was my responsibility to find a cover artist, so I was trying to think of artists who (1) would be appropriate for a cover featuring The Flash, (2) were available, and (3) we could afford.
Scott Kolins? He was still exclusive to Marvel Comics at that time. Howard Porter? Exclusive to DC Comics. Carmine Infantino? Too expensive (and probably unavailable). And that’s how it kept going. All I could think of were artists who were too expensive OR unavailable because they were exclusive to a publisher OR just weren’t appropriate for the task.
One day I was explaining my dilemma to Don on the phone… and I forget if he volunteered to draw the cover or if I asked him if he could do it….
Okay, the more I think about it, the more I think it went like this: I had initially discounted Don as a potential cover artist because he was exclusive to DC. But when I was on the phone with Don explaining to him my problem, he informed me that he was in between contracts. It was a very narrow time window we were talking about here. He knew he was going to re-up with DC, and soon, so if I needed a cover from him, it had to be done ASAP. I got John’s permission to use Don as a cover artist, Don and I discussed the appropriate layout for the cover, and it was all done pretty quickly after that.
And then Don and I both got excited when later, I was able to hire Moose Baumann (another good friend of mine) to color the cover. Don had never had his work colored by Moose before. The two work with different editors on different titles. So I’m proud to have been able to bring these two great artists together, if only for a cover.
O’Shea: Do you have to be die-hard fan of the Flash family to read this book–or who would you say is the ideal audience for this book?
Dallas: I would argue that anyone interested in comic book history should find value in The Flash Companion. Even people who aren’t fanatic about The Flash can read The Flash Companion to learn about some of comic book history’s most important writers, artists and editors. Creators like Shelly Mayer, Gardner Fox, Julius Schwartz, Bob Kanigher, John Broome, Ross Andru, Carmine Infantino, etc., etc.
O’Shea: Any plans to do another book like Flash Companion or have you run the race on books like that (pun intended)?
Dallas: A lot of professionals and readers have encouraged me to do a Flash Companion: Volume 2. Certainly, there are plenty of other Flash creators to interview and write articles about… but I don’t know if there are enough of them for another 220 page book. I would probably have to address other DC Comics speedsters, principally the ones you mentioned earlier: Max Mercury and Johnny Quick. I’d also like to address the Impulse series. So maybe a Speed Force Companion is in order. I’ll have to think about it.
In the meantime, I’ll keep working on my Omega Chase comic book, the third issue is at the printer right now and can be order through my publisher’s website. I also have another creator-owned comic book that I’m shopping around, so I’m keeping busy.
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