This weekend’s escapist, light-hearted superhero post here at Balladeer’s Blog resumes examining Marvel Premiere, this time from issue #31 to 40.
MARVEL PREMIERE Vol 1 #31 (Aug 1976)
Title: A Birthday Nightmare
Villains: A violent mob and Major Del Tremens’ troops
Synopsis: This was the origin story for Woodgod, created by Bill Mantlo. Just outside Liberty, NM is a ranch used by government scientists David Pace and his wife Ellen Pace. It serves as their residence AND laboratory for their Top-Secret projects.
One such project is a deadly nerve gas called Purple Mist. Another is the cross-fertilization of human and animal genetic material which has resulted in the unnatural “birth” of Marvel’s newest character – called Woodgod by David Pace.
Under observation by the Paces, Woodgod grows to maturity in just three days and his enormous intellectual potential has him speaking in simplistic English but we’re told Woodgod will be at genius level in a few more days.
Superstitious people in Liberty, NM get covert glimpses of the creature and decide to raid the Pace ranch to destroy Woodgod and any other such “monsters” being created there. David and Ellen are shot to death in the attack but our main character is super-strong and invulnerable, so he survives being shot multiple times.
Woodgod’s still-childlike mind is confused by the violence. The attackers destroy all the lab equipment at the ranch and unintentionally unleash the Purple Mist nerve gas into the air. All the attackers die, then all the human and animal life within 15 miles of the ranch drops dead as well.
The only survivor is Woodgod, whose healing powers make him immune to the gas. At nearby Vertigo Military Base (later retconned into Tranquility Base) Major Del Tremens and his troops become aware of the chaos at the Department of Defense installation on David and Ellen Pace’s ranch. Continue reading
It’s a week-ending current events roundup from 
THE ROBERT HERRIDGE THEATER (1960-1961) – This half-hour anthology series ran 26 episodes and featured dramatizations of stories by prominent authors as well as experimental installments. 
THE MILES DAVIS STORY – An experimental biography of Miles Davis told via concert footage of Davis himself as well as Dave Brubeck, John Coltrane, Ahmad Jamal and Gil Evans. 
R.I.P. Robert Duvall. This year we say goodbye to this monumental actor like we said goodbye to his friend and fellow thespian giant Gene Hackman early last year. Most tributes will cover Duvall’s roles in his many, many films whose titles are household words. This being Balladeer’s Blog I’ll instead look at some of his overlooked gems. 
TOMORROW (1972) – Robert Duvall – who called this one of his favorite performances – plays poverty-stricken farmer and sawmill operator Jackson Fentry of Mississippi. One cold December evening he comes across the pregnant Sarah Eubanks, a poor woman whose abusive husband has abandoned her because he wants nothing to do with raising their child. 
THE LUNARIAN PROFESSOR AND HIS REMARKABLE REVELATIONS CONCERNING THE EARTH, THE MOON AND MARS TOGETHER WITH AN ACCOUNT OF THE CRUISE OF THE SALLY ANN (1909) – Written by James B Alexander back in the glory days of titles so long they might not fit in a 140 character limit. 
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