The Hawkman Cometh

The Hawkman Cometh

or: Scowl On The Cowl

One of the "joys" in working on the Golden Age was the constant interference from outside editors protecting their fiefdoms with demands that I draw badly or treat characters and DC history contemptuously. They'd let any kid off the street dump on the characters left and right but when I showed a modicum of respect the hammer would come down.

Word came down that I wasn't allowed to use the hawks helmet on Hawkman and had to replace it with a yellow cowl...wtf? One of the greatest character designs in comics history and they want to throw it out in favor of a yellow sock? I would have understood, and probably would have played along, if they'd asked for the original open beaked helmet but this was too much, especially in that the single beaked helmet was the one in use by the time the series took place.

Editor Archie Goodwin, bless his little heart, finally got tired of this and other battles and said, "It's an Elseworld story. Leave Smitty alone."

This one's for Archie.

Happy Trails

Smitty