FIRST COMICS: Warp

FIRST COMICS: Warp!

Warp!, also spelled Warp, was an American science-fiction play created at Chicago, Illinois' Organic Theatre Company in 1971 by co-authors Stuart Gordon and Lenny Kleinfeld, the latter under the pseudonym Bury St. Edmund. The play moved to Broadway for a short run in February 1973. The play and its backstory became the basis for spinoff comic books and other media.

PLAY:
Original production Chicago's Organic Theater Company opened the original play Warp! in 1971. Co-author Stuart Gordon in 2002 recalled its original inspiration: "It was three full-length plays that were inspired by Marvel Comics. ... Well, we weren't able to get the rights to any of the characters from Marvel, so we created our own. But I would say that Warp was very influenced by comic books like Dr. Strange and Thor". Billed by the company as "the world's first science fiction epic-adventure play in serial form", it was performed for over a year before moving to Broadway. The Chicago cast included John Heard, André De Shields, Cecil O'Neal, J. Pat Miller, and Bruce A. Young. The costume designer was first-timer Cookie Gluck, a former art major at the University of Wisconsin who was married to actor O'Neal. The lighting designer was David K.H. Elliott.The Chicago non-profit organization Videopolis videotaped the original production. Move to Broadway The production moved to New York City's Ambassador Theatre on Broadway, where part one of the trilogy, My Battlefield, My Body, ran seven previews beginning January 31, 1973, and eight performances from February 14–18, 1973.[13] It marked the Broadway debut of John Heard, who played David Carson/Lord Cumulus. Other cast-members included Tom Towles as Prince Chaos, and Keith Szarabajka as the young David. The Broadway production was produced by Anthony D'Amato in association with the Organic Theatre Company, and directed by co-writer Stuart Gordon. Comic-book and commercial artist Neal Adams was art director, with scenic design by Robert Guerra, costume design by Laura Crow and Cookie Gluck; lighting design by Jane Reisman and Neil Peter Jampolis; and visuals by Khamphalous Lightshow. William J. Norris and Richard Fire provided incidental music, with the latter also providing vocal sound effects. Frank Marino and Lynne Guerra were stage managers. Broadway castThe opening-night cast:André De Shields ... Desi ArnezCordis Fejer ... Penny Smart; SargonJane Fire ... Sheila FantastikRichard Fire ... Mrs. O'Grady; psychiatric director; bank teller; Lugulbanda; YggthionCarolyn Gordon ... Mary Louise; ValariaJohn Heard ... David Carson; Lord CumulusWilliam J. Norris ... Bank president; Dr. Victor Vivian; SymaxKeith Szarabajka ... Attendant; young David CarsonTom Towles ... Janitor; Prince Chaos

COMIC BOOK SERIES:
The alternative comics company First Comics published the spin-off comic-book series Warp, which ran 19 issues cover-dated March 1983 to February 1985. The premiere issue featured a 20-page Lord Cumulus story by writer Peter B. Gillis, penciler and cover artist Frank Brunner, and inker Bob Smith; and an eight-page story starring Sargon, Mistress of War, by writer John Ostrander, penciler Lenin Delsol, and inker Joe Staton. Brunner would continue as penciler through issue #9, after which he was succeeded by Jerry Bingham except for two issues, #16 (penciled by Bill Willingham) and #19 (penciled and inked by Mike Gustovich, the regular inker for most of the series' run). The backup features rotated among "Sargon, Mistress of War" by Ostrander, Delsol and Staon; "The Faceless Ones", by writer Jack C. Harris and artist Steve Ditko; "Valaria, Insect Sorceress", by writer Gillis, penciler Willingham, and inker Bruce Patterson; and "Outrider", by Gillis and various artists. First Comics additionally published Warp Special #1-3 (July 1983, Jan. & June 1984), by writer Gillis and pencilers Howard Chaykin, Mark Silvestri, and George Freeman, respectively. Previous to these, the Organic Theater Company and Mike Gold Media Services published a one-shot, 16-page promotional-giveaway comic book, Weird Organic Tales #1 (1981), that included scenes from several of the theater company's works, including Warp!.