Rocketeer

The Rocketeer is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books originally published by Pacific Comics. Created by writer/artist Dave Stevens, the character first appeared in 1982 and is a homage to the Saturday matinee serial heroes from the 1930s through the 1950s.[2]

This article is about the comic book. For the film, see The Rocketeer (film). For other uses, see Rocketeer (disambiguation).
The Rocketeer
Cover of Rocketeer Adventures 1 (May 2011 IDW), art by Alex Ross
Publication information
PublisherPacific Comics
Eclipse Comics
Comico Comics
Dark Horse Comics
IDW Publishing
First appearanceStarslayer #2 (April 1982)
Created byDave Stevens[1]
In-story information
Alter egoCliff Secord
PartnershipsPeevy
Notable aliasesThe Flying Man
AbilitiesAbove-average hand to hand combatant
Excellent athlete
Highly skilled pilot and marksman
Flight via jetpack

The Rocketeer's secret identity is Cliff Secord, a stunt pilot who discovers a mysterious jetpack that allows him to fly. His adventures are set in Los Angeles and New York in 1938, and Stevens gave them a retro, nostalgic feel influenced by the King of the Rocket Men and Commando Cody movie serials (both from Republic Pictures), and pinup diva Bettie Page.[3]

The character was adapted into the 1991 Walt Disney Pictures film The Rocketeer by director Joe Johnston.

Premise

In 1938 Los Angeles, Cliff Secord, a local racing pilot and barnstormer, discovers a rocket pack hidden by two gangsters fleeing the police. When he decides to take it for a spin, his life is turned upside down - in more ways than one!

Publication history

The Rocketeer's first adventure appeared in 1982 as a backup feature in issues #2 and #3 of Mike Grell's Starslayer series from Pacific Comics. Two more installments appeared in Pacific's showcase comic Pacific Presents #1 and 2. The fourth chapter ended in a cliffhanger that was later concluded in a special Rocketeer issue released by Eclipse Comics.[4] The complete story was then collected by Eclipse in a single volume titled The Rocketeer (ISBN 1-56060-088-8). It was published in three versions: a trade paperback edition, a trade hardcover, and a signed, limited edition hardcover. Noted fantasy author Harlan Ellison, a fan of the Rocketeer and also an acquaintance of Dave Stevens, wrote the introduction to the collection; both Dave Stevens and Harlan Ellison signed the limited edition on a specially bound-in bookplate.

The story was continued in the Rocketeer Adventure Magazine. Two issues were published by Comico Comics in 1988 and 1989; the third installment was not published until 1995, six years later by Dark Horse Comics. All three issues were then collected by Dark Horse into a glossy trade paperback titled The Rocketeer: Cliff's New York Adventure (ISBN 1-56971-092-9) that quickly went out-of-print.

In 1991 comics artist Russ Heath illustrated the graphic novel The Rocketeer: The Official Movie Adaptation, based on Walt Disney's 1991 feature film The Rocketeer.

On February 28, 2009, IDW Publishing announced a hardcover collecting the entire series for the first time, intended to be published in October 2009. Dave Stevens' The Rocketeer: The Complete Adventures contained new coloring by Laura Martin, who had been chosen by Dave Stevens prior to his death.[5] The book appeared in December, two months later than announced, in two versions: A standard trade hardcover edition with full color dust jacket and a second, more lavish, deluxe edition (ISBN 978-1600105371), limited to 3000 hardcover copies. The deluxe edition used different Stevens artwork for its dust jacket and was issued in an illustrated, all color slipcase; it also had full color illustrated endpapers. While the deluxe contains the same Rocketeer comics reprints as the trade edition, it adds more than 130 pages of previously uncollected Rocketeer material: sketches, preliminaries, character designs, script pages, photographs, and original art pages, with commentaries by Dave Stevens and several peers who occasionally assisted him on The Rocketeer. The deluxe edition sold out almost immediately upon publication, but IDW announced a second printing.

In May 2011 IDW debuted the first issue of Rocketeer Adventures. Issue #1 featured work from John Cassaday, Mike Allred, Kurt Busiek, and Michael Kaluta, plus pin-ups by Mike Mignola, Dave Stewart, and Jim Silke. The four 2011 issues offered regular and variant cover designs by both Alex Ross and Dave Stevens; various black and white Retailer Incentive variants were also published in limited press runs; several additional variant issues by Jet Pack Comics, featuring recolored Dave Stevens artwork, were also published in limited press runs. To celebrate the launch of this all-new Rocketeer series, IDW's Hundred Penny Press also simultaneously released a $1.00 re-issue of the original The Rocketeer #1 by Dave Stevens, fully remastered and recolored by Eisner-winner Laura Martin. The first four Rocketeer Adventures issues were then collected in 2011 into a hardcover graphic novel, followed by second hardcover graphic novel in 2012 that collected the next four issues: A color Rocketeer title logo was used on the regular retail copies of the graphic novel, plus one additional Retailer Incentive hardcover without a title logo printed on its dust cover; both versions were offered with the same Alex Ross' color artwork. The two volumes were collected in an oversized deluxe edition, titled High Flying Adventures, in 2017.

A four-issue miniseries by IDW, Rocketeer: Cargo of Doom, debuted in 2012. Each issue offered a regular retail cover design and one alternate Retailer Incentive cover. In addition publisher Jet Pack Comics issued several additional Retailer Incentive variants with Dave Stevens re-colored artwork reprinted on their covers. The miniseries was then collected as two variant graphic novel hardcovers, one offered with a regular dust jacket, the other without.

A four-issue IDW miniseries, Rocketeer: Hollywood Horror, debuted in late February 2013. As with the previous series, each issue offered a regular retail cover design and one Retailer Incentive alternate cover. The miniseries was then collected as two variant hardcover graphic novel editions, one with a regular style dust jacket, the other without.

A fifth IDW miniseries, Rocketeer and The Spirit: Pulp Friction, debuted in mid-2013, as another limited four-issue miniseries. As with the two previous Rocketeer miniseries, each issue offered a regular retail cover design and one Retailer Incentive alternate cover. A special San Diego Comic Con International promotional variant issue #1, with a black and white wraparound cover, was offered only at the 2013 convention. The miniseries was then collected as a hardcover graphic novel.

In September, 2014, IDW issued The Rocketeer: Jet-Pack Adventures, a prose anthology of ten short stories written by authors including Yvonne Navarro, Don Webb, Gregory Frost, Nancy Holder, Nancy A. Collins. Set between 1939 and 1946, the stories feature appearances by such historical figures as Howard Hughes, Hedy Lamarr, Tarzan's Johnny Weissmuller, and writer Zane Grey.[6]

A sixth IDW Rocketeer miniseries, Rocketeer: At War, debuted in December 2015.

Background

Allusions

The Rocketeer makes a great number of references to pop culture from the 1930s to the 1950s. The first storyline, "The Rocketeer" features characters from the Doc Savage pulp series, though Stevens takes care not to refer to any of the characters — including Doc Savage himself — by name, so as not to violate copyright and incur a licensing fee for use of the characters. "Cliff's New York Adventure" similarly features unnamed characters from The Shadow pulp magazine series, including the Shadow's alter ego, Lamont Cranston.

Besides pulp characters, actors of the 1940s and 1950s have also visually inspired two characters: Lothar, the villain in "Cliff's New York Adventure", is based on the likeness of acromegalic horror movie star Rondo Hatton;[7] and Cliff Secord's girlfriend Betty is modeled after "Queen of Pinups" Bettie Page.[3]

A "Rocket Man" character, with a near-identical rocket backpack and similar uniform, appeared in four Republic Pictures movie serials from 1949 through 1953. The fourth serial, originally conceived as a syndicated Republic TV series, was first released under contractual obligation to movie houses as a regular multi-chapter theatrical serial; two years later, it was re-cut with new footage and additional music added and finally syndicated on NBC television stations as twelve 25-minute episodes. The four Republic Rocket Man serials were: King of the Rocket Men (1949), Radar Men from the Moon (1952), Zombies of the Stratosphere (1952), and Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe (serial 1953, TV series 1955)[8]

In other media

Film

Television
  • In The Amazing World of Gumball's season 5 episode "The Boredom", Rocketeer's jet pack can be seen in the dumpster.
  • A television series was released on November 8, 2019 on Disney Junior in the United States, and on November 10 on Disney Junior in Canada.[11][12] The series focuses on a young girl named Kit Secord (voiced by Kitana Turnbull) who receives the family jetpack for her birthday and uses it to protect the town of Hughesville from various villains.[13] Outside of voicing Kit's father Dave, Billy Campbell reprised his role of the Rocketeer in a newsreel seen in the episode "First Flight." The episode "The Critter Gang" established that Cliff Secord is Kit's great-grandfather.

Video games
  • The first officially licensed Rocketeer game was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in May 1991. It is a side-scrolling action game published and developed by Bandai, and followed the plot of the movie.[14]
  • Developer NovaLogic released a licensed PC game in December 1991 which was published by Disney Software. NovaLogic went on to port the game to the Super NES in May 1992 with IGS as the publisher. Both versions are a collection of minigames based on the film.
  • The video game Rocket Ranger (1988) features a character who takes on a Rocketeer-like role.
  • A Rocketeer-inspired character, named Brocketeer, is featured as a playable character in the game Broforce.

Homages

Comic homages

Songs
  • The song "Rocketeer" by Foxy Shazam is an homage to the film.

Reception

IGN listed the Rocketeer as the 76th Greatest Comic Book Character, stating that the Rocketeer taps into that popular desire to fly. IGN also stated the Rocketeer saga remains a compelling one.[17]

References
  1. Nelson, Valerie J (March 13, 2008). "Illustrator created 'Rocketeer' comic." The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  2. Gustines, George Gene. "Dave Stevens, 52, Artist Who Created the Rocketeer, Dies." The New York Times. March 30, 2008. Retrieved: October 21, 2010.
  3. "Dave Stevens." twomorrows.com. Retrieved: October 21, 2010.
  4. "Dave Stevens: 1955–2008." The Comics Reporter. Retrieved: September 24, 2012.
  5. "IDW Resurrects The Rocketeer." Archived 2010-11-23 at the Wayback Machine IGN. Retrieved: October 31, 2010.
  6. Conner, Jeff; Waltz, Tom (September 2014). The Rocketeer: Jet-Pack Adventures. San Diego, California: IDW. p. 410. ISBN 9781613779071.
  7. "Dr Hermes Retro-Scans: "The Rocketeer" Archived 2011-08-15 at the Wayback Machine livejournal.com. Retrieved: March 12, 2011.
  8. Kelle, Alexandra. "Movie Serials." allmovie.com, 2010. Retrieved: September 10, 2010.
  9. Maltin 2000, p. 302.
  10. Brodesser-Akner, Claude. "Exclusive: Disney's 'The Rocketeer' Being Reloaded." Vulture. August 21, 2012. Retrieved: August 22, 2012.
  11. "Disney's The Rocketeer Cartoon Adds Two New Cast Members". Comic Book. 2019-07-27. Retrieved 2019-08-27.
  12. "Disney Junior's "The Rocketeer" Premieres Friday, Nov. 8, on Disney Channel, Disney Junior and DisneyNOW". The Futon Critic. October 10, 2019.
  13. Trumbore, Dave (February 27, 2018). "'The Rocketeer' Set to Return … As an Animated Disney Junior Series?". Collider. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  14. GameFAQs: The Rocketeer (NES)
  15. Penny Arcade! - Our Old Tricks
  16. Best Shots Extra: Cap: The Chosen #1, Iron Man: Enter The Mandarin #1, Ms. Marvel #19 - Newsarama Archived 2007-09-11 at the Wayback Machine
  17. "The Rocketeer is number 76". IGN. Retrieved May 11, 2011.

Bibliography
  • Bilson, Danny, Paul De Meo and William Dear. The Rocketeer: Screenplay: S.l. : s.n., dated June 13, 1990.
  • Cotta Vaz, Mark and Patricia Rose Duigna. Industrial Light & Magic: Into the Digital Realm. Hong Kong: Del Rey Books, 1996. ISBN 0-345-38152-1.
  • David, Peter. The Rocketeer Novelization of the Film. New York: Bantam Books, 1991 ISBN 0-553-29322-2
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