REVIEW—Although Will Eisner is best known for “The Spirit” and the graphic novels he wrote and drew in later life, a substantial portion of his career was devoted to creating comic-book-like pages for the U.S. Army magazine PS, the Preventive Maintenance Monthly.The magazine was established by the Department of Defense in 1951 to help American troops in Korea deal with aging equipment from World War II and new weapons that hadn’t been adequately tested.
Paul E. Fitzgerald, who enjoyed a long friendship with Eisner, documents the history of the publication, especially Eisner’s contributions from 1951 to 1971, in “Will Eisner and PS Magazine” (Fitzworld.US, $59.95; 224 pp. illustrated). The didactic panels recall the “Private Snafu” cartoons that Theodore “Dr. Seuss” Geisel and the Warner Bros. animators created for the short-film program the Army-Navy Screen Magazine.Eisner’s well-intentioned but dim Pvt. Joe Dope recalls Snafu; the shapely Connie Rodd may remind some readers of Milt Caniff’s Miss Lace. Eisner fans will enjoy this introduction to a little-known segment of his output, and PS was obviously a success: After 60 years and many artists and editors, the magazine is still going.
– Charles Solomon
