Part 46 (2/2)
”An oversight,” Joe suggested
”Why would they subpoena you, you're just an editor at that fifth-rate house, pardonso?”
”I don't know,” Sa on you” He took out his handkerchief from his pocket and mopped his forehead ”Jesus, what lunacy I never should have let you two talkpile of whoopee cushi+ons and lit them on fire, let me tell you” He went over to the lone chair ”Mind if I sit down?” He sat and let out a long sigh It seein rather perfunctorily, for show, but by the end it carried a startling cargo of unhappiness ”Letelse,” he said ”I'm afraid I didn't come up here just because I wanted to say hello to Kavalier I thought I ought to-I thought you ht want to know”
”Knohat?” Sammy said
”You remember we had that lawsuit?” Anapol said
The next day-the twenty-first of April, 1954-the Court of Appeals of the State of New York would finally hand down a ruling in the matter of National Periodical Publications, Inc National Periodical Publications, Inc v v Empire Comics, Inc Empire Comics, Inc The suit had, in that time, made its way in and out of the courts, with settle a skein of reversals and legal s too coes National's case, in the business, was generally felt to be weak Though both Superth, and the odd iuise of far weaker and s, the same qualities and features were shared by a host of other characters who had appeared in the comic books since 1958; or had been shared, at any rate, until those characters, one by one or in wholesale lots, had reat superhero burn-off that followed the Second World War Though it was true that National had also pursued Fawcett's Captain Marvel and Victor Fox's Wonder Man through the courts, a raft of other strong , while wearing so Man, Master Man, the Blue Beetle, the Black Condor, the Sub-Mariner-had been allowed to go about their business unmolested, without any apparent loss of incoreater inroads into the hegemony of Superman in the marketplace had been made by his successors and imitators at National itself-Hourman, Wonder Woman, Dr Fate, Starman, the Green Lantern-many of ere but distortions or pale reflections of the original What was ued, the character of Superauys stole froo Dann was the bulletproof superhuman hero of his novel The suit had, in that time, made its way in and out of the courts, with settle a skein of reversals and legal s too coes National's case, in the business, was generally felt to be weak Though both Superth, and the odd iuise of far weaker and s, the same qualities and features were shared by a host of other characters who had appeared in the comic books since 1958; or had been shared, at any rate, until those characters, one by one or in wholesale lots, had reat superhero burn-off that followed the Second World War Though it was true that National had also pursued Fawcett's Captain Marvel and Victor Fox's Wonder Man through the courts, a raft of other strong , while wearing so Man, Master Man, the Blue Beetle, the Black Condor, the Sub-Mariner-had been allowed to go about their business unmolested, without any apparent loss of incoreater inroads into the hegemony of Superman in the marketplace had been made by his successors and imitators at National itself-Hourman, Wonder Woman, Dr Fate, Starman, the Green Lantern-many of ere but distortions or pale reflections of the original What was ued, the character of Superauys stole froo Dann was the bulletproof superhuar Rice Burroughs, whose orphaned hero, young Lord Greystoke, grew up to becos; and frohs, whose orphaned hero, young Lord Greystoke, grew up to becos; and from Lee Falk's newspaper comic strip The Phantom, The Phantom, whose eponymous hero had pioneered the fashi+on for colorful union suits a implacable foes of crime In so many of his particulars, the Master of Elusion-a human showman, vulnerable, dependent on his team of assistants- bore very little resemblance to the Son of Krypton Over the years, a nureat Learned Hand, had atteues not always quite firmly in cheek, to sort out these fine and crucial distinctions A legal definition of the term ”superhero” had even been arrived at whose eponymous hero had pioneered the fashi+on for colorful union suits a implacable foes of crime In so many of his particulars, the Master of Elusion-a human showman, vulnerable, dependent on his team of assistants- bore very little resemblance to the Son of Krypton Over the years, a nureat Learned Hand, had atteues not always quite firmly in cheek, to sort out these fine and crucial distinctions A legal definition of the term ”superhero” had even been arrived at[18][18] In the end, in its wisdo the ruling of the state Supre opinion in the co the Escapist's doom In the end, in its wisdo the ruling of the state Supre opinion in the co the Escapist's doom
Like the news of the Treaty of Ghent to General La, when it came, already would have been overtaken by events
”Today,” Anapol said, ”I killed the Escapist”
”What?”
”I killed him Or let's say he's retired I called Louis Nizer, I told him, Nizer, you win As of today, the Escapist is officially retired I give up I' his death warrant”
”Why?” Joe said
”I've been losing money on the Escapist titles for a few years now There was still so arrange hiures have been in a nosedive for quite soet about it None of our big hitters-Scofflas of Horror, Hearts and Flowers, Bobby Sox-none of theathered aspassed The Angel, the Arrow, the Comet and the Fin, the Snoweous, Captain Flag, Captain Freedoht, Captain Venture and Major Victory, the Flame and the Flash and the Ray, the Monitor, the Guardian, the shi+eld and the Defender, the Green Lantern, the Red Bee, the Crier, the Black Hat and the White Streak, Cat-Man and the Kitten, Bulletled Rid and Stripesy, Dr Mid-Nite, Mr Terrific, Mr Machine Gun, Mr Scarlet and Miss Victory, Doll Man, the Ato thresher blades of changing tastes, an aging readershi+p, the colutted marketplace, and the unbeatable foe that had wiped out Hiroshi+reat heroes of the forties, only the stalwarts at National-Superman, Batman, Wonder Woularity or commercial clout, and even they had been forced to suffer the indignity of seeing their warti in titles where for forced upon the novelties and gimmicks, from fifteen different shades and flavors of Kryptonite to Bat-Hounds, Bat-Monkeys, and a ical-powered little elf-eared nudnick known as the Bat-Mite
”He's dead,” Saly ”I can't believe it”
”Believe it,” Anapol said ”This whole industry is dead after these hearings You heard it here first, boys” He stood up ”That's why I' Empire?”
Anapol nodded ”After I called Louis Nizer, I calledon the papers noant to get some sucker in there before the roof falls in” He looked around at the stacks of crates ”Look at this place,” he said ”You alere a slob, Kavalier” lawyer and told hiet some sucker in there before the roof falls in” He looked around at the stacks of crates ”Look at this place,” he said ”You alere a slob, Kavalier”
”True,” Joe said
Anapol started to walk out, then turned back ”You remember that day?” he said ”You two caoing to make me a million bucks”
”And we did,” Sammy said ”A lot ht, boys,” he said ”Good luck”
When he had gone, Sammy said, ”I wish I had I had alovely and invisible before hi lovely and invisible before him
”Why?” Joe said
”I'd buy Eht you hate comic books You are embarrassed by the else you wanted”
”Yeah,” Saotof yours You always did have a way of confusing my priorities like that”
”Did I? Do I?”
”You always used to make it seem okay to believe believe in all this baloney” in all this baloney”
”I think it as okay,” Joe said ”I don't think maybe neither of us should have stopped” okay,” Joe said ”I don't think maybe neither of us should have stopped”
”You were frustrated,” Saet your hands on so that he could feel his silence beginning to speak to Sammy
”Huh,” he said finally
”You killed Germans?”
”One,” Joe said ”It was an accident”
”Did you-did it make you feel-”
”It made me feel like the worst one back over to the final chapter of The Gole down at a panel in which the clapper in the porter's bell on the doorpost of Heaven's gate was revealed to be a grinning hu down at a panel in which the clapper in the porter's bell on the doorpost of Heaven's gate was revealed to be a grinning hu that he wanted to get a hug froht that it was so he had never done before ”I h”
”Do you feel sad?”
”A little” Sae of The Gole a light on so in it ”Not as ht It's been such a, you know A long tied ”What about you?” and pursed his lips He seeht on so in it ”Not as ht It's been such a, you know A long tied ”What about you?”
”Like you” He took a step toward Sa time”
He laid an ar his head, and they rocked back and forth a little, re in 1939 when they had borne the Escapist and his company of fellow adventurers into Sheldon Anapol's office in the Kra ”Frenesi,” Joe filled with the rapture and rage of the iinary punch he had just landed on the jaw of Adolf Hitler
”That was a good day,” Joe said
”One of the best,” said Sammy
”How much money do do you have?” you have?”
”Not a million, that's for sure” Sammy stepped out from under Joe's arm His eyes narrowed, and he looked suddenly shrewd and Anapolian ”Why? How much do you you have, Joe?” have, Joe?”
”It isn't quite a million,” Joe said
”It isn't quite-you mean to say that you-oh Thatin 1939, Joe had socked money into the fund that he intended for the support of his family when they reached Aht have suffered, and that it et work Most of all, he wanted to buy therass somewhere in the Bronx or New Jersey He wanted theain By the end of 1941, he was putting in more than a thousand dollars at a time Since then-apart from the ten thousand dollars he had spent to doo the sedie-he had barely touched it; in fact, the account had been swelled, even in his absence, by royalties froraish lump payments he had received as his share of the Parnassus serial deal