Qld federal MP unmasked as latest high-profile Phantom ‘phan’
A federal politician is the latest high-profile Queenslander to out himself as a fan of comic book hero the Phantom.
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A federal politician is the latest high-profile Queenslander to out himself as a fan of comic book hero the Phantom.
LNP Member for Hinkler Keith Pitt professed his devotion to the Ghost Who Walks on social media after attending a unique art exhibition this week.
“If you haven’t already been to see the Phantom: Off the Drawing Board exhibition at the Bundaberg Regional Galleries do yourself a favour and check it out!” he wrote on Instagram.
“Like many others, I grew up reading the Phantom in the local paper and I’m still a big fan today.”
The Phantom: Off the Drawing Board showcases the work of Phantom creators including former Bundaberg paramedic Shane Foley, who has been cover artist for the Australian edition of the comic book since 2016, and now also contributes interior art and stories.
Foley and gallery director Rebecca McDuff on Wednesday hosted an “art walk” in which they told the stories behind the art and the exhibition.
The original comic art on display gave an insight into the creative process, with corrections and annotations still visible.
McDuff said interest in the world-first exhibition had been eye-opening, even prompting iconic American Phantom artist Sy Barry, 95, to contribute pieces from his personal collection.
Some of the more curious items in the exhibition include genuine Papua New Guinean war shields adorned with Phantom art, public service literature targeted at First Nations people featuring the Phantom, a collection of “skull rings”, an early black-and-white Phantom serial playing on loop in the “Skull Cave” theatrette, and The Phantom Response, in which artists including Mental as Anything’s Reg Mombassa give their modern take on the Phantom.
The exhibition also features a recreation of Foley’s Bundaberg home studio.
Foley said the Phantom, created by Lee Falk in 1936, was the original costumed hero, bridging the gap between early pulp characters such as the Green Hornet, Tarzan and Zorro and archetypical superheroes like Superman, Batman and Spider-Man.
Despite originating in the US, the Phantom was most successful in Australia, Sweden and India.
Other high-profile Queensland Phantom fans include the King of rugby league Wally Lewis and late premier Wayne Goss.
Foley is the second Queensland artist to make his mark on the Phantom. Brisbane university lecturer Paul Mason drew the first ever spin-off in the character’s almost nine-decade history, Kid Phantom (also featured in the exhibition), in 2017.
The Phantom: Off the Drawing Board runs until February 4.
Originally published as Qld federal MP unmasked as latest high-profile Phantom ‘phan’