John Dixon (cartoonist)
| John Dixon | |
|---|---|
| Born |
20 February 1929 Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia |
| Died | 7 May 2015 (aged 86) Bonsall, California, United States of America |
| Pen name | John Dangar Dixon |
| Occupation | Cartoonist, writer, illustrator, graphic designer |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Genre | Adventure, crime, pulp fiction |
John Dixon (20 February 1929 - 7 May 2015) was an Australian comic book artist and writer, best known for his comic strip creation, Air Hawk and the Flying Doctors (which ran from 1959 until 1986).
John Dangar Dixon was born in Newcastle on 20 February 1929, the son of a school principal. After completing his education at Cook Hill Intermediate High he became a trainee window dresser at a softgoods company. He then became interested in art and obtained a position as an advertising agent with the same company. Dixon moved to Sydney in 1945. After doing various advertising jobs, Dixon was advised to turn to the comics profession. He heeded the advice and wrote and drew his first comic book story, called The Sky Pirates, and showed it to Sydney publisher Henry John Edwards. Edwards bought Dixon's story, which appeared in Edwards' flagship comic book, Action, and offered Dixon a full-time contract to produce comic books.
A lifelong aviation enthusiast, Dixon's first comic book was Tim Valour, whose title character was an adventure-seeking pilot, who got involved in science-fiction-styled adventures. Dixon subsequently changed direction, making Valour into an agent of the International Security Organisation, battling saboteurs and super-villains. During the Korean War Valour and his sidekick, Happy, were pressed into military service flying American Sabre jet fighters. Tim Valour was incredibly popular and appeared in three separate series (a total of 150 issues) for close to a decade. The first series ran for 38 issues, featured 6d and 8d cover prices and was published under the H. John Edwards imprint. The second series actually began with issue No. 10 and lasted 41 issues. Cover prices went from 8d to 9d and it was published under Edwards' Action Comics imprint. The final series, titled Tim Valour – Commander of the Flying Tigerhawks, began with issue No. 11 and featured 9d and 1/- (one shilling) cover prices. Two Tim Valour Specials were also published in the 1950s.
Dixon's next title was The Crimson Comet, loosely based on the US comic book superhero, Red Raven. One of Australia's few true superhero comics, The Crimson Comet was a private investigator, Ralph Rivers, who stripped off his trenchcoat to reveal his bright red costume and huge wings grafted to his back. First appearing in 1949, The Crimson Comet fought criminal masterminds and spies before Dixon passed the comic on to Albert de Vine, returning to the series in the early 1950s. The first Crimson Comet series ran for 73 issues, with cover prices ranging between 6d-9d, and was published under the H. John Edwards imprint. The second series, believed to begin with issue No. 14, ran for 18 issues and carried 9d and 1/- cover prices. This series was published under Edwards' Action Comics label.
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