The Phantom – Run Silent, Run Deadly

February saw Tony DePaul and Mike Manley experiment with the comic strip form.

Here’s Tony on their unique flashback sequence for The Phantom:

Mike Manley and I just finished up ten consecutive days of pure sequential art!

For ten days, we published no dialogue in the strip, no text narration, just the art.

It was a first in the 86-year history of the strip, our attempt to tell part of the story through an appeal to our readers’ visual literacy alone.


© King Features Syndicate

Read Tony’s fascinating look behind the scenes of his and MIke’s
first-of-its-kind* story strip continuity including Tony’s scripts he sent to Mike,
full size strips, and some background “for those who came in late.”


(*as far as I know)

to Joseph Nebus

4 thoughts on “The Phantom – Run Silent, Run Deadly

  1. There were some among us who were hoping it was a flip book.

    And as for me, this story is so good that it’s a pity that it’s isolated from the actual Phantom continuity by being embedded in the frame story of “Mozz tells Walker what will happen if he does this thing he hasn’t done.” Such great writing and art, all blown on a counter factual.

  2. “Such great writing and art, all blown on a counter factual.”

    “This is an imaginary story — aren’t they all?” — Alan Moore

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