Wilson of the Wizard

Infobox comics character
character_name = William Wilson


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publisher = D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd
debut = "Wizard" #1029 (24 July 1943)
creators = Gilbert Lawford Dalton
alter_ego = Wilson of the Wizard
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subcat = DC Thomson Comics
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Wilson of the Wizard or William Wilson is a fictional character whose adventures were initially published in the British illustrated story paper "Wizard" published by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd.

Publication history

The character first appeared in issue 1029 "Wizard" (24 July 1943) in a story titled "Wilson the Wonder Athlete". The first adventure introduced Wilson as a supreme athlete, who joins a race from out of the crowd and manages to record a four-minute mile. The character's adventures were written by Gilbert Lawford Dalton using the pen name W S K Webb, and a book, "The Truth About Wilson" collected a number of the text stories in the 1960s.cite web|url=http://bishsbeat.blogspot.com/2008/08/forgotten-books-truth-about-wilson.html|title=Forgotten Books: The Truth About Wilson!|last=Bishop|first=Paul|date=August 15 2008|publisher=Self published|accessdate=2008-10-03 [http://www.webcitation.org/5bIpeq2KD Archived] on 2008-10-03.] Thought by Paul Gravett to be the prototype of the "astonishing sporting prodigies" which became popular in British comics, (cf. Alf Tupper, Roy of the Rovers), Gravett describes him as an "unassuming totally dedicated loner, [wanting] no glory or publicity".cite book|last=Gravett|first=Paul|coauthors=Peter Stanbury|title=Great British Comics|publisher=Aurum|date=2006|isbn=1845131703] Although his stories were initially told in prose, a move to the comic papers "Hornet" and "Hotspur" saw the character depicted in comic strip form. The character was later revived for D.C. Thomson's "Spike" comic of 1984 to 1985, initially within a comic strip with art by Neville Wilson. Referred to as the The Man in Black, the character was revealed to be Wilson in the course of the story, with reprints of the older material published within the comic as Wilson's diaries. ["Spike", DC Thomson, (weekly) 22nd January 1983 to 28th April 1984]

Fictional character biography

The character had numerous adventures, including inventing the Fosbury Flop, becoming the first man to climb Everest and captaining an England cricket team to The Ashes in Australia.cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/2353289/Wizard-Wilson-still-casts-spell.html|title=Wizard Wilson still casts spell|last=Gallagher|first=Brendan|date=05 Jan 2005|publisher=The Telegraph|accessdate=2008-10-03 [http://www.webcitation.org/5bInSk0id Archived] 2008-10-03.] cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/2393471/Just-spiffing!.html|title=Just spiffing!|last=Gallagher|first=Brendan|date=27 Dec 2004|publisher=The Telegraph|accessdate=2008-10-03 [http://www.webcitation.org/5bIo0VfPh Archived] 2008-10-03.] Depicted as being born in 1795, he is gifted the secret of eternal life by a hermit.cite news|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/the-blaydon-racers-shun-chemistry-set-725851.html|title=The Blaydon Racers Shun Chemistry Set|last=Turnbull|first=Simon|date=20 February 2000|publisher=The Independent|accessdate=2008-10-03 [http://www.webcitation.org/5bIqdiqBI Archived] on 2008-10-03.] Originally hailing from Yorkshire, and living in a cave on a diet of nuts and berries, Wilson exemplified British grit and the stiff upper lip. According to "The Guardian" he "was hailed as a welcome wartime morale booster", while "The Telegraph" remembers him as a "focused and intense individual... [with no] recorded instance of him smiling or cracking a joke."cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2004/sep/12/arts.artsnews|title=Crumbs! Comic heroes storm art world|last=Thorpe|first=Vanessa|date=September 12 2004|publisher=The Guardian|accessdate=2008-10-03 [http://www.webcitation.org/5bIn826n6 Archived] 2008-10-03.] In 2004 artist John Reynolds acquired the license to reproduce images of Wilson as large screen-print canvases. Former Guinness book of Records deputy editor and athletics statistician Ian Smith cites the character as an inspiration, and he inspired many British athletes in their careers as well as Belgian cyclist Eddy Merckx.cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/athletics/2394961/Philip-on-Saturday-Legend-of-Wizard%27s-Wilson-lives-on.html|title=Philip on Saturday: Legend of Wizard's Wilson lives on|date=24 Jan 2003|publisher=The Telegraph|accessdate=2008-10-03 [http://www.webcitation.org/5bIpJ1gOO Archived] 2008-10-03.] [Bryant, John. "Phenomenal pen that rewrote the record books", "The Times" (London), Jan 14 1999, p. 44.] [Turnbull, Simon. "Leftfield: Cortisone in the act of doing a bit of bird", "The Independent on Sunday" (London), Feb 27 2000, p. 18.] The character is still used in newspaper reports on sport as a cultural reference point. [cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/mar/15/sixnations2007.sixnations2|title=Geraghty has the x factor England need|last=Kitson|first=Robert|date=March 15 2007|publisher=The Guardian|accessdate=2008-10-03 "As eye-catching debuts go, Geraghty's extravagant bow against France made even Wilson of the Wizard look pedestrian." [http://www.webcitation.org/5bIqw0xaM Archived] on 2008-10-03.] [cite news|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket/selectors-fail-their-first-big-test-with-peculiar-pick-of-pattinson-872330.html|title=Selectors fail their first big test with peculiar pick of Pattinson|last=Brenkley|first=Stephen|date=20 July 2008|publisher=The Independent|accessdate=2008-10-03 "Only if Geoff Miller, the chairman of selectors, and his panel had summoned some recluse from a solitary eyrie on the Yorkshire moors where he had spent years honing his action so one day he could come to England's rescue at the 11th hour (Wilson of the Wizard, say) could they have sprung a greater surprise." [http://www.webcitation.org/5bIr3weU9 Archived] on 2008-10-03.]

References

Further reading

*Gallagher, Brendan. "Sporting Supermen: Wilson of the Wizard, "Tough of the Track" and Roy of the Rovers: The Life and Times of the Comic-Book Heroes" ISBN 1845131657

External link

* [http://www.26pigs.com/wizard/index.html Fan site with reader memories of the strip and comic]