My dear Comic fans, Phantom fans, crazy guys from the world over, what would be your reaction, if our idol, the legendary LEE FALK would have interacted with you and to add icing to the cake, send you an autograph ?!?
Yes, this is true, and it is a proud Indian to own it!!
I am thankful to this blog world, I got the opportunity to befriend so many people across India
and the world...so many are holding responsible positions in their fields....
Recently I came across another fan of Phantom and Mandrake via my blog and in the first chat
I came to know he is not just a fan but a person far beyond it!
Mr. V.V. Ramanan, Senior Journalist on Sports Desk, The Hindu
He is a well known quizmaster at The Hindu, where he works on the Sports Desk as a senior journalist. ( I am proud to be part of the print media, being a printing engineer! )
And now, the main objective of writing about him :
A few days back while chatting, he mentioned that he had an autograph of LEE FALK and he also said he will send it to me scanned to post in my blog!
I requested him to also send me a short writeup about how he interacted with the great legend which i am also posting her in his own words, along with the autographed panel which i think, he is the only Indian who proudly owns it!
AND I COULD NOT RESIST MYSELF ROM COLORING IT!
Here is Ramanan in his own words as to how he got the autograph of 'The Master':
Being a fan of The Phantom and Mandrake, apart from other comic book characters, since childhood, I decided to write to the creator Lee Falk and request him for a personalised autographed panel with one of his creations.
Those were pre-Internet days (very restricted) and I manged to get his address from visiting the U.S. Consulate Library. I wrote a letter full of admiration (as any die-hard of fan would do) and made my request. Since he was doing me a favour, I enclosed a self-addressed envelope.
And lo and behold, 'The Master' responded within a month with the panel that you see in this blog and a letter that thanked me for being a big fan. Even though that letter has gone missing (how careless of me!), I have preserved this panel..and will do so till eternity..it can't die like our costumed heroes :)
I also have signed panel/photos from other wonderful creators like Hank 'Dennis the Menace' Ketcham, Mort 'Beetle Bailey' Walker and Charles 'Peanuts' Schulz. I also have assorted other autographs including all the Indian Nobel Laureates, the Presidents of our great nation, Neil Armstrong, Hillary and Tenzing, etc..
I want to get the autograph of the creator of Bahadur..Can somebody help me out with his contact details..Thanks a million in advance :)
And before I conclude, I want to say to a BIG BIG THANK YOU to fans like Sameer, Prabhat, Venkit, Ajay, Anupam and others (whose names I can't recall) for doing such a wonderful job of scanning and distributing the timeless Indrajal creations for us to go on a nostalgic trip and the younger generation to enjoy..May their tribe increase.
As mentioned in an earlier mail, I am attaching a scan of the panel that Lee Falk autographed for me some 14 years back. It would be niceif you could post it on your blog so that fellow Phantom lovers can enjoy it. Thanks.
and to add to the joy of all phantom lovers, i am posting yet another Phantom Indrajal missing number.....I call this a post of the millenium....my biggest post ever, since it contains a unique AUTOGRAPH of Lee Falk!
download:http://www.mediafire.com/?krqzinntde0
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