Mary Perkins, On Stage
Feb. 10, 1957 to Jan. 11, 1958
Publisher: Classic Comics Press
Pub. Date (March 2013 - 2nd Printing)
ISBN 10 - 0985928425
ISBN 13 - 978-0985928421
168 Pages
I don't quite recall how I stumbled across this collection of newspaper comic strips, but I know that growing up, I remember reading Apartment 3-G and occasionally reading Mary Worth. Both of those were soap opera-type comic strips with a regular cast and stories about their lives. Of course, having a love of theater myself, I was interested in this strip about the life of a young actress looking to make it big in theater in New York City. So, I picked up the first volume. And the second. And the third, fourth, fifth, sixth and more volumes. Unfortunately, with so many books stacking up to read and so much to do in my life, I never got around to reading any of them. Until now...
Although creator Leonard Starr may not have really wanted to do a daily strip about a female protagonist that centered around theater life, it definitely became a popular strip, lasting for more than twenty (20) years (1957 - 1979). The art is impressively detailed, with very intricate backgrounds - from cityscapes to theater sets to office decor and home furnishings. The characters are distinctive and easily identifiable, no two looking alike (so there is never any confusion as to who each character is when reading the strip from day to day). And Starr has a magnificent talent for drawing expressions on his characters - if you were to take away the dialogue, in most instances, you can easily discern what the character is feeling or thinking just by the expression on his or her face!
The storylines are very fast paced, so even though there are only three panels per day, the story keeps moving and you never get bored. The strip started on a Sunday (February 10, 1957), providing Starr with nine panels to begin his story. And if you think about, introducing a new strip, an initial story, and your main characters in just nine panels - well, by today's standards, that is quite a feat! In that first strip, Starr introduces readers to Mary Perkins as she is leaving her small hometown for a chance to make it big in New York City; at the same time, he introduces readers to Gordon D'Avilla, the theatrical agent that Mary is scheduled to meet (and who clearly does not have the best of intentions based on the few panels readers see of him in this first strip!); and leaves readers hanging with Mary's arrival in Penn Station, where she is bewildered at the hustle and bustle of the big city!
It's easy to become attached to Mary as she starts this long journey to become an actress. As with any soap opera, there are plenty of villains, plenty of love interests, plenty of supporting cast, and plenty of coincidences that either aid or hinder Mary in her plans. The first storyline deals with her theatrical agent, Mr. D'Avilla, who turns out to be a con-man, taking advantage of small town girls like Mary, leeching them for all they have, then sending them packing. Conveniently enough, though, Mary sparks the interest of one of D'Avilla's co-conspirators, who aids her in not only getting her money back, but also in starting her career as an actress. The second story features an aged director, who is known to hate young actresses - but he takes a sudden interest in Mary, insisting that he will turn her into a star! Of course, it turns out that she resembles his old flame, who betrayed him, and he plans to turn Mary into her. She manages to then get a job at a nighclub where one of her roommates worked, and in the third story, she makes an enemy out of a co-worker and becomes the inspiration for a has-been pianist. The drama continues right into the fourth storyline, where a photographer and the magazine editor for whom he works make a bet as to whether the magazine can make a star out of anyone - and, of course, Mary happens along at that most opportune moment! Mary becomes quite enamored with the photographer, Pete Fletcher, and a whirlwind romance leads to a proposal - but can the life of a jetsetting photographer and a fledgling actress really come together?
I suppose only future collections of the strip can answer that question...
Just like any daytime soap opera, it is quite easy to get drawn into the lives of these characters. Starr writes them with such flourish, and the dialogue is natural, sometimes witty, sometimes heartbreaking, but always dramatic. The reader quickly learns who to love, who to hate, and who to love to hate! I, for one, am hooked, and look forward to delving into more of Mary Perkins' life "On Stage" in Volume Two of this series.
RATING: 10 clipping hat-check girls out of 10 for re-introducing this comic strip world to a whole new generation of theater-loving, soap opera-watching, comic strip-reading fans!
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