Dick Tracy to make comic-book return
Word Balloons #1182: Mad Cave to publish adventures of lawman
The most prominent comic strip character created by an Oklahoman will make his comic-book return in 2024.
According to a news release, Mad Cave Studios has partnered with “Dick Tracy” comics rights-holders Alex Segura, Michael Moreci, and Chantelle Aimée Osman, with oversight from “Dick Tracy” owners, Tribune Content Agency, to bring police detective back to comic-book pages. Dick Tracy was created by Oklahoma native Chester Gould.
Dick Tracy comic strips still appear in newspapers and online today. Additionally, Clover Press recently took over the Dick Tracy newspaper strip reprints previously handled by IDW.
Mad Cave Studios Senior Editor Chas! Pangburn said this version will be a “neo-noir reinvention of the character.”
“We’ve partnered with all-star creators to deliver new tales of corruption, thievery, and murder,” Pangburn said in the news release.
The series debut will be handled by Segura and Moreci, with artist Geraldo Borges (“Nightwing,” “No/One”) with creative consultation from Chantelle Aimée Osman.
“Alex, Chantelle, and I have been pursuing ‘Dick Tracy’ for many years, so to say this is a passion project, even that’s an understatement,” said Moreci in the news release. “We love this character, we love this world. And we’re approaching it with great care—we don’t want to make a new ‘Dick Tracy;’ we just want to make a Dick Tracy that feels rich and layered, that feels suited to our times. We can’t wait to share, with our great partners at Mad Cave, what we have in store.”
Segura has written comics, prose mysteries, and more; his recent novel “Secret Identity” combined the world of the 1970s comics scene with a murder mystery. Segura said he’s long been a fan of the Dick Tracy character and plans a grounded, noir take.
“Michael and I have loved ‘Dick Tracy,’ his stellar rogues gallery, and unforgettable supporting cast since we first became aware of the character as kids,” Segura said in the news release. “It’s been a winding road to not only get the rights to publish new stories starring the iconic detective, and I’m so thankful that my journey with Chantelle and Michael brought us to Mad Cave. The stuff Geraldo is cooking up perfectly evokes the grounded, cinematic vibe we’re bringing to this origin story.”
Tracy has endured for more than 90 years and has been featured in nearly every available medium.
“Dick Tracy” creator Gould may have been the first writer to bring crime fiction to comics.
The early comic strips and comic books that dealt with crime were dealing with the aftermath of the Prohibition era and the gangsters that era spawned, as seen in Dick Tracy, and searching for heroes and escapism as the Great Depression began.
Dick Tracy, first called “Plainclothes Tracy,” was a police detective on the Chicago police force. Gould wrote and drew the strip from its debut in 1931 until his retirement in 1977. Gould, a native of Pawnee, worked as a sports cartoonist for what was then The Daily Oklahoman (now The Oklahoman) from 1919-1921 while a student at Oklahoma A&M college in Stillwater.
Tracy in the 1930s and 1940s was ubiquitous in many formats, including film and radio, and is often considered to be the most prominent comics character to be created by an Oklahoman.
The character has endured for more than 90 years, and was the subject of a big-screen film starring Warren Beatty in 1990. The character’s square jaw and yellow hat and jacket have become iconic. Tech gadgets like the two-way wrist radio may have helped inspire future tech advancements like the Apple Watch. The character even appeared on a U.S. postage stamp in 1995.
Oklahomans who want to delve further into Dick Tracy history may want to visit Gould’s hometown of Pawnee, home to the world’s largest Dick Tracy mural, as well as the “Pawnee Historical Society Museum and Dick Tracy Headquarters.”
The Chester Gould Dick Tracy Museum, previously housed in Woodstock, Illinois, is now an online repository of Dick Tracy info at
https://www.dicktracymuseum.com/
Kraken Sale 2 continues!
Speeding Bullet Comics continues the second annual “Kraken Sale.” which features 50 percent off hundreds of trade paperbacks, hardcovers, art books and comics collections.
Step into the “Kraken Sale” room with the undersea-blue walls and step into a world of savings!
Find amazing deals on titles including hardcovers, paperbacks, children’s books, and more from publishers including Marvel, DC, Image, Dark Horse, and more! Keep checking with Speeding Bullet Comics, 614 N Porter Ave. in Norman, OK, for more deals through October as the Kraken grows!
Matthew Price, matthew@matthewLprice.com, has written about the comics industry for more than two decades. He is the co-owner of Speeding Bullet Comics in Norman.
Pretty cool about Dick Tracy!