Woodrow Gelman (1915 – February 9, 1978) was a publisher, cartoonist, novelist and an artist-writer for both animation and comic books. As the publisher of Nostalgia Press, he pioneered the reprinting of vintage

comic strip A comic strip is a Comics, sequence of cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often Serial (literature), serialized, with text in Speech balloon, balloons and Glossary of comics terminology#Captio ...

s in quality hardcovers and trade paperbacks. As an editor and art director for two-and-a-half decades at Topps Chewing Gum, he introduced many innovations in trading cards and humor products. Gelman was the co-creator of Popsicle Pete and the co-creator of

Bazooka Joe Bazooka Joe is a comic strip character featured on small comics included in individually wrapped pieces of Bazooka (chewing gum), Bazooka bubble gum. He wears a black eyepatch, lending him a distinctive appearance. He is one of the more recogniza ...

for Topps. He was also a co-creator of ''

Mars Attacks ''Mars Attacks'' is a science fiction-themed trading card series released in 1962 by Topps. The cards feature artwork by science fiction artists Wally Wood and Norman Saunders. The cards form a story arc, which tells of the invasion of Earth by ...

'', adapted into the 1996 film by

Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and producer. Known for popularizing Goth subculture, Goth culture in the American film industry, Burton is famous for his Gothic film, gothic horror and dark fantasy films. ...

. Born in Brooklyn, Gelman attended

City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a Public university, public research university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York ...

Cooper Union The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, commonly known as Cooper Union, is a private college on Cooper Square in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Peter Cooper founded the institution in 1859 after learning about the government-s ...

and

Pratt Institute Pratt Institute is a private university with its main campus in Brooklyn, New York. It has an additional campus in Manhattan and an extension campus in Utica, New York at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute. The institute was founded in 18 ...

before signing on as an assistant animator, in-betweener and scripter with

Fleischer Studios Fleischer Studios () was an American animation studio founded in 1929 by brothers Max and Dave Fleischer, who ran the pioneering company from its inception until its acquisition by Paramount Pictures in 1942, the parent company and the distri ...

in 1939, continuing to write for

Famous Studios Famous Studios (renamed Paramount Cartoon Studios in 1956) was the first animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was established as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount seized contr ...

in 1946. He is the uncle of the psychologist

Susan Gelman Susan A. Gelman (born July 24, 1957) is currently Heinz Werner Distinguished University Professor of psychology and linguistics and the director of the Conceptual Development Laboratory at the University of Michigan. Gelman studies language and ...

and the statistician

Andrew Gelman Andrew Eric Gelman (born February 11, 1965) is an American statistician who is Higgins Professor of Statistics and a professor of political science at Columbia University. Gelman attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as a National M ...

Comic books and advertising

Gelman was the creator and writer of

talking animal A talking animal or speaking animal is any non-human animal that can produce sounds or gestures resembling those of a human language. Several species or groups of animals have developed forms of communication which superficially resemble verbal ...

feature "The Dodo and the Frog" for

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

. His comic book work from 1944 to 1954 included ''Nutsy Squirrel'' and other talking animal comic books of the 1940s, including ''Funny Stuff'' and ''

Comic Cavalcade ''Comic Cavalcade'' was an anthology comic book published by DC Comics from 1942 to 1954. Most American comic book publishers in the 1930s and 1940s Golden Age of comic books published anthology titles that showcased a variety of characters, us ...

''. He also wrote and drew the crime story, "The Kid from Brooklyn!", for ''Heroic Comics'' #32 (Sept. 1945). In 1945, Gelman teamed with Ben Solomon to form a New York advertising art service, Solomon & Gelman, to create advertising campaigns involving cartoon characters, such as their '' Popsicle Pete'' magazine and ads for the Popsicle company. Topps writer-editor

Len Brown Leonard Charles Brown (born 1 October 1956)) is a former mayor of Auckland, New Zealand, and former head of the Auckland Council. He won the 2010 Auckland mayoral election on 9 October 2010 and was sworn in as Mayor of Auckland on 1 November 2 ...

recalled how the partnership led to Solomon and Gelman to sign on full-time with Topps:

Topps

In the autumn of 1951, Gelman and

Sy Berger Seymour Perry Berger (July 12, 1923 – December 14, 2014) was an employee of the Topps company for over 50 years. He is credited as being the co-designer of the 1952 Topps baseball series, as is regarded as "the father of modern baseball cards". ...

, then a 28-year-old

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

veteran, designed the 1952

Topps The Topps Company, Inc. is an American company that manufactures trading cards and other collectibles. Formerly based in New York City, Topps is best known as a leading producer of Baseball card, baseball and other sports and Non-sports tradi ...

baseball card A baseball card is a type of trading card relating to baseball, usually printed on cardboard, silk, or plastic. In the 1950s, they came with a stick of gum and a limited number of cards. These cards feature one or more baseball players, teams, s ...

set on the kitchen table of Berger's apartment on Alabama Avenue in the Broadway Junction section of

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. From 1953 to the late 1970s, Gelman headed Topps's Product Development Department, working with a staff that included associate creative director Len Brown, gagwriter

Stan Hart Stan Hart (September 12, 1928 – July 27, 2017
) was an American comedy writer with many television ...

, visual concept creator Larry Reilly, writer-cartoonists

Art Spiegelman Itzhak Avraham ben Zeev Spiegelman ( ; born February 15, 1948), professionally known as Art Spiegelman, is an American cartoonist, editor, and comics advocate best known for his graphic novel ''Maus''. His work as co-editor on the comics magazin ...

and

Bhob Stewart Robert Marion Stewart, known as Bhob Stewart (November 12, 1937 – February 24, 2014) was an American writer, editor, cartoonist, filmmaker, and active fan who contributed to a variety of publications over a span of five decades. His articles a ...

, and designer-cartoonist Rick Varesi. Gelman assigned work to numerous freelance cartoonists, including Jack Davis,

Mort Drucker Morris "Mort" Drucker (March 22, 1929 – April 9, 2020) was an American caricaturist and comics artist best known as a contributor for over five decades in ''Mad (magazine), Mad'', where he specialized in satires on the leading feature film ...

Jay Lynch Jay Patrick Lynch (January 7, 1945 – March 5, 2017) was an American cartoonist who played a key role in the underground comix movement with his '' Bijou Funnies'' and other titles. He is best known for his comic strip ''Nard n' Pat'' and the r ...

Bob Powell Bob Powell (né Stanley Robert Pawlowski; While gives Stanislav Pavlowsky, and gives Stanislav Pavlowsky, Bails and Ware note: "family name corrected by his son, Seth R. Powell July 2006." October 6, 1916

John Severin John Powers Severin (; December 26, 1921 – February 12, 2012) was an American comics artist noted for his distinctive work with EC Comics, primarily on the war comics '' Two-Fisted Tales'' and ''Frontline Combat''; for Marvel Comics, e ...

Tom Sutton Thomas F. Sutton (April 15, 1937 – May 1, 2002) He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force after graduating from high school in 1955, and worked on art projects while stationed at Fort Francis E. Warren, near Laramie, Wyoming. Later, stationed at Itam ...

Basil Wolverton Basil Wolverton (July 9, 1909 – December 31, 1978)
at the

Wally Wood Wallace Allan Wood (June 17, 1927 – November 2, 1981) was an American comic book writer, artist and independent publisher, widely known for his work on EC Comics's titles such as ''Weird Science (comic), Weird Science'', ''Weird Fantasy'', an ...

. Beginning in 1967, Gelman supervised ''

Wacky Packages ''Wacky Packages'' are a series of humorous trading cards featuring parodies of consumer products. The cards were produced by Topps beginning in 1967, first in die-cut, then in peel-and-stick sticker format. There were 16 series produced betwee ...

'', one of the biggest fads of the 1970s, and he was responsible for devising many other Topps cards, stickers, posters and humor products over decades.

Triple Nickel Books

In 1955, the firm of Solomon & Gelman published a series of 64-page juvenile novelettes. Because they retailed for 15 cents, the line was called Triple Nickel Books. The first Triple Nickel Book was very successful, as it was based on the life of Davy Crockett when Crockett was a national fad. At the same time, they published two other Triple Nickel Books about the adventures of the Power Boys, juvenile fiction in the tradition of the Hardy Boys. At least eight Power Boys adventures were published under the pseudonym Arthur Benwood, a name created by combining the first names of Ben Solomon and Woody Gelman. The line includes ''The Secret of Crazy Cavern'' (1955), ''Riddle of the Sunken Ship'' (1955), ''Castle of Curious Creatures'' (1956) and ''Mystery of the Marble Face'' (1956). These books are included in the University of South Florida's Special Collections: Tampa Children's Literature Collection. (The Triple Nickel titles are apparently unrelated to Mel Lyle's later and slightly better-known Power Boys series from the mid-1960s.)

Nostalgia Press

After doing a facsimile reprint of the 1945 ''Little Nemo in Slumberland'' softcover, with an

August Derleth August William Derleth (February 24, 1909 – July 4, 1971) was an American writer and anthologist. He was the first book publisher of the writings of H. P. Lovecraft. He made contributions to the Cthulhu Mythos and the Lovecraftian horror, cosmi ...

introduction, Gelman began Nostalgia Press in the early 1960s. One of the earliest Nostalgia Press books was ''The Picture History of

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is considered o ...

'' (1965), designed by Gelman and showcasing a large collection of rare Chaplin memorabilia. In 1960, he was an associate editor of ''

The American Card Catalog ''The American Card Catalog: The Standard Guide on All Collected Cards and Their Values'' is a reference book for American trading cards produced before 1951, compiled by Jefferson Burdick. Some collectors regard the book as the most important in ...

''. The first Nostalgia Press hardcover was ''Flash Gordon'' (1967), a reprint of

Alex Raymond Alexander Gillespie Raymond Jr. (October 2, 1909 – September 6, 1956) was an American cartoonist and illustrator who was best known for creating the ''Flash Gordon'' comic strip for King Features Syndicate in 1934. The strip was subsequently a ...

comic strips, and this book had a follow-up utilizing ''Flash Gordon'' proof sheets supplied to Gelman by the artist

Al Williamson Alfonso Williamson (March 21, 1931 – June 12, 2010) was an American cartoonist, comic book artist and illustrator specializing in adventure, Western, science fiction and fantasy. Born in New York City, he spent much of his early childhood in ...

. Two years later, he compiled art by

Charles Dana Gibson Charles Dana Gibson (September 14, 1867 – December 23, 1944) was an American illustrator who created the Gibson Girl, an iconic representation of the beautiful and independent American woman at the turn of the 20th century. He published his ...

for ''The Best of Charles Dana Gibson'' (Bounty Books, 1969), with accompanying biographical material and an introduction by Gelman. Nostalgia Press editors Ron Barlow and

, along with EC publisher

Bill Gaines William Maxwell "Bill" Gaines (; March 1, 1922 – June 3, 1992) was an American publisher and co-editor of EC Comics. Following a shift in EC's direction in 1950, Gaines presided over what became an artistically influential and historically i ...

, selected 23 stories, one previously unpublished, for the full-color ''EC Horror Comics of the 1950s''; with introductions by Stewart and

Larry Stark Larry Stark (born August 4, 1932 in New Brunswick, New Jersey) is an American journalist and reviewer best known for his in-depth coverage of the Boston theater scene at his website, Theater Mirror. In newspapers and online, Stark has written hund ...

, this oversize (10" x 14") hardcover was published by Nostalgia Press in 1971. In 1973, Gelman published a collection of ''Little Nemo'' strips, first published in Italy. Gelman discovered original strips at a cartoon studio where McCay's son worked in 1966. Many of the original drawings that Gelman recovered were displayed at the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

under the direction of curator

A. Hyatt Mayor Alpheus Hyatt Mayor (1901–1980) was an American art historian and curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a leading figure in the study of prints, both old master prints and popular prints. Biography Early life A. Hyatt Mayor's father ...

. In the 1970s, Gelman did two collections of ''

Scorchy Smith ''Scorchy Smith'' is an American adventure comic strip created by artist John Terry (cartoonist), John Terry that ran from March 17, 1930 to December 30, 1961. Scorchy Smith was a pilot-for-hire whose initial adventures took him across America, ...

'', and he moved into yet another area, publishing a magazine, ''Nostalgia Comics'', mainly devoted to reprints of comic strips. The first issue of his earlier magazine, ''Nostalgia Illustrated'', was completed in 1967 as a dummy but was never published. Instead, Gelman sold the title and some material to

Magazine Management Magazine Management Co., Inc. was an American publishing company lasting from at least c. 1947 to the early 1970s, known for men's-adventure magazines, risqué men's magazines, humor, romance, puzzle, celebrity/film and other types of magazines ...

, which did at least a dozen nationally distributed issues in the early 1970s. During the 1970s, he also published his ''Golden Age of the Comics'' series, reprinting such strips as ''

Mandrake the Magician ''Mandrake the Magician'' is a Comic strip syndication, syndicated newspaper comic strip, created by Lee Falk before he created ''The Phantom''.Ron Goulart, ''The Encyclopedia of American Comics''. New York: Facts on File, 1990. . pp. 91, 249 ...

'', ''

Terry and the Pirates ''Terry and the Pirates'' is an action-adventure comic strip created by cartoonist Milton Caniff, which originally ran from October 22, 1934, to February 25, 1973. Captain Joseph Patterson, editor for the Chicago Tribune New York News Syndica ...

'' and ''

Thimble Theatre Popeye the Sailor Man is a fictional cartoon character created by E. C. Segar, Elzie Crisler Segar.Robert Altman Robert Bernard Altman ( ; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer, producer. He is considered an enduring figure from the New Hollywood era, known for directing subversive and sat ...

's live-action film ''

Popeye Popeye the Sailor Man is a fictional cartoon character created by E. C. Segar, Elzie Crisler Segar.E. C. Segar Elzie Crisler Segar (; December 8, 1894 – October 13, 1938), known by the pen name E. C. Segar, was an American cartoonist. He created Popeye in 1929, introducing the character in his comic strip ''Thimble Theatre''."E. C. Segar", in Walker, B ...

's ''Thimble Theatre'' comic strip. The screenplay by

Jules Feiffer Jules Ralph Feiffer ( ; January 26, 1929 – January 17, 2025) was an American cartoonist and author, who at one time was considered the most widely read satirist in the country. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1986 for Pulitzer Prize for Editori ...

was based directly on ''Thimble Theatre Starring Popeye the Sailor'', a hardcover reprint collection of 1936-37 Segar strips published in 1971 by Nostalgia Press. Tim Burton's film ''Mars Attacks'' (1996) was adapted from Topps 1962 ''

'' trading card series written by Gelman and Len Brown and illustrated by Wally Wood, Bob Powell and

Norman Saunders Norman Blaine Saunders (January 1, 1907 – March 7, 1989) was a prolific 20th-century American commercial artist. He is best known for paintings in pulp magazines, paperbacks, men's adventure magazines, comic books and trading cards. On occasio ...

Awards

In 1971, he was honored by the Academy of Comic Book Arts with Recognition for Preservation and Popularization of Comic Art. Gelman, who lived in Malverne, Long Island, maintained a collection of rare American and European periodicals dating back to the 19th century. His collection of

Winsor McCay Zenas Winsor McCay ( – July 26, 1934) was an American cartoonist and animator. He is best known for the comic strip ''Little Nemo'' (1905–1914; 1924–1927) and the animated film ''Gertie the Dinosaur'' (1914). For contractual reasons, he w ...

cartoons is housed in the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum at

Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...

. He died February 9, 1978, of a stroke at Franklin General Hospital, Valley Stream, Long Island. His niece

and nephew

are prominent academics.

References

External links

Lambiek Comiclopedia biography.

Wacky Packages Web Pages

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gelman, Woody 1915 births 1978 deaths American art directors American advertising artists and illustrators American comics writers American comics artists American book publishers (people) Baseball cards American sports painters People from Malverne, New York 20th-century American businesspeople Fleischer Studios people Famous Studios people