Ed Wood Wednesdays, week 189: 'Ed Wood Jr. Graphic Novel' (2022)

I only recently learned of this strange, great graphic novel about Ed Wood.

In 1982, musician Brian Eno told Los Angeles Times reporter Kristine McKenna that the album The Velvet Underground and Nico (1967) only sold 30,000 copies in its first five years, but "everyone who bought one of those 30,000 copies started a band." We could quibble here. The seminal art-rock album had sold more than 30,000 copies by 1972, and it's impossible to say how many bands were formed as a direct result of its release. But you get Eno's point: the VU album had an influence far bigger than its meager commercial success would indicate. Somehow, this weird little LP inspired creativity in others.

Who knew this existed?

I feel Ed Wood has had a similar effect on his fans. He's the Velvet Underground and Nico of directors, if you will. Popularity eluded him during his lifetime, and even a big-budget, mainstream biopic about him massively underperformed at the box office in 1994. But still the Wood-inspired tribute projects continue to materialize, nearly half a century after his death. In the course of writing this column, I have discussed feature films, short films, albums, books, musicals, trading cards, fan art, and even toys inspired by the works of Edward D. Wood, Jr. 

Just a couple of weeks ago, I reviewed John Wooley's graphic novel version of Plan 9 from Outer Space from 1990 and lamented that there weren't more Wood-inspired comics for us fans to enjoy. But I was in luck! The ever-reliable Bob Blackburn posted recently on Facebook about something called Ed Wood Jr. Graphic Novel (2022) credited to one Diana Wood, a Portland-based illustrator presumably unrelated to Eddie. This was totally outside my field of experience. I'd never heard of this artist or this book, but it was inexpensive and looked promising, so I took the plunge. To kill the suspense, I'm glad I did.

Incidentally, I bought this graphic novel from Amazon, and a page near the back of the book indicates that my personal copy was printed the day I ordered it at a facility near where I live. I must be a luddite or something, but is that how books work now? If so, I'm in. The book arrived remarkably quickly and was very slick and professional, like anything you'd find at Barnes & Noble. Très impressionnant! And this makes every copy unique. I'm happy to have this as a physical object and not a PDF file or a folder of JPGs. 

The novel itself is a phantasmagoria that freely intermingles elements from Ed Wood's movies, Eddie's real life story, and author Diana Wood's fertile imagination. It's set in the early-to-mid-1950s, the same years covered in Ed Wood (1994). You will not see the booze-bloated, long-haired Eddie directing porno flicks or writing tawdry paperbacks. Instead, the book focuses most heavily on the making of Ed's first two features, Glen or Glenda (1953) and Jail Bait (1954), though Bride of the Monster (1955) and Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957) are evoked here as well.

After a suitably dramatic introduction from Criswell, we commence with the making of Glen or Glenda in 1953. A young, eager Eddie interviews with producer George Weiss, gets the job of writing and directing the film, tells girlfriend Dolores Fuller the good news, and then dons women's underwear, makeup, and a wig to get inspired to write the screenplay. Later, on the set, an elderly, ill Bela Lugosi is coughing terribly but still manages to give a performance that brings tears to Ed's eyes. With that in the can, Eddie dons female attire to shoot his own scenes. This surprises but does not anger or upset Bela. Ed's friend Bunny Breckinridge drops by the set and is impressed by Ed's boldness. Dolores is initially upset to see her boyfriend dressed as a woman but soon gets over it. Together they shoot the film's famous dream sequence, bringing the graphic novel's first chapter to a close.

Some panels from Ed Wood Jr. Graphic Novel. (Photo by Bob Blackburn.)

In the second chapter, budget-conscious George Weiss drops by the set and is shocked to find Ed not only dressed in drag but starring in the movie in addition to writing and directing. Eddie reassures him that all is well and completes the movie. We then see several iconic moments from Glen or Glenda: Glen confessing his secret to Barbara; Glen discussing his problems with his friend Johnny (Charlie Crafts); Glen having a nightmare in which his father (Captain DeZita) is depicted as the Devil; and Barbara reluctantly handing over her angora sweater to Glen. Ed Wood proudly screens the finished movie for an appalled George Weiss, who tells him it is terrible and will bomb at the box office. Eddie fumes, declaring that George is wrong.

We are then treated to a six-page mini-biography of Maila "Vampira" Nurmi called "The Story of Vampira," complete with many portraits of the lady herself. After growing up in Oregon, Maila moves to Los Angeles and becomes a glamour model. One night in the early 1950s, she attends a Halloween party dressed as a Morticia Addams-type female ghoul character called Vampira and lands a job hosting a TV horror show. The program is an immediate sensation—a true succès de scandale—and Maila becomes, in the book's words, "the first queen of counter culture." But Vampira's show only lasts a year, and Maila nearly lapses into poverty before accepting a role as a zombie in Ed Wood's Plan 9 from Outer Space.  Against all odds, that film gains an "accidental fame" that rescues both Maila and Ed from obscurity.

The cover of Bad's first issue.

Back to the main story. It is now 1954, and Eddie is in production on his sophomore feature, Jail Bait. Unfortunately, he's also being evicted from his apartment... again. Eddie has lunch with Bunny and talks about casting wrestler Tor Johnson in his next film. ("His arms are like tree trunks of solid muscle!") Later, on the set of the movie, poor actor Tim Farrell struggles to function with his face wrapped in bandages. He can't really breathe very well, and his peripheral vision is so limited that he keeps bumping into things and injuring himself.

Problems continue to mount on the set of Jail Bait. A stern-faced union representative shows up to tell Eddie that the production will be shut down soon for numerous violations. Elderly actor Herbert Rawlinson is so frail he has to be seated for all his scenes. Bodybuilder Steve Reeves wants to do his scenes with his shirt off, and Dolores Fuller gets into a full-on cat fight with costar Tedi Thurman. Meanwhile, Ed's landlord has thrown out his possessions, and a toilet at the film studio explodes.

But the worst news is yet to come. Herbert Rawlinson dies before his scenes are completed. Undeterred, Ed Wood decides to keep filming with the deceased actor's body, treating him rather like poor Bernie Lomax (Terry Kiser) in Weekend at Bernie's (1989). Somehow or another, Eddie manages to finish filming Jail Bait, but Dolores Fuller has had enough and walks out on him. A dejected Ed Wood has lunch with actor Charley Crafts, who kindly offers to hold onto Eddie's wigs while the director seeks out more permanent accommodations. And that's the end of the graphic novel, apart from a quick plug for Bad Magazine (2022), a Mad parody/homage.

The book concludes with some thoughtful notes from author Diana Wood. "I feel in Edward a kindred spirit," Diana writes, noting how difficult it must have been to be a transvestite in the conformist 1950s. The author explains that she had ambitions of being a filmmaker and took inspiration from Eddie as he was portrayed in the Tim Burton biopic from 1994. She leaves us with a passage partly taken from that film:

Why spend your life making someone else's dreams come true? Why not make your own dreams come true? This book is part of that dream for me.

While Ed Wood Jr. Graphic Novel is not sexually explicit and contains no nudity, there is a recurrent motif of what I'd call cheesecake or pinup-style artwork throughout this book, somewhat reminiscent of the work of Peruvian painter Alberto Vargas. Dolores Fuller and Vampira are frequently glimpsed in scanty outfits, casting seductive looks at the reader and striking Playboy-esque poses. That's to be expected and in keeping with the Woodian spirit.

But the artist made one major stylistic choice I did not anticipate. When Ed Wood appears in drag in this novel, he is depicted as fully female in appearance, complete with very convincing female anatomy. (He claims at one point to be wearing falsies, but they appear true enough to my eyes.) While some who knew Ed personally say he looked alarming while dressed as "Shirley," especially in his later years, I think it was always his goal to achieve the height of feminine beauty and sex appeal. And here, he does. That's just one of the reasons why I think he would have been extremely flattered by this book.

In all, though it may not be for every taste, Diana Wood's Ed Wood Jr. Graphic Novel is the kind of discovery that makes me glad to be a Wood fan, even after all these years. It combines two of my longtime passions—Ed and comics—so how could I help but love it? I'm certain that fans will enjoy poring over these pages, especially the dramatic full-page panels such as the one of Bela Lugosi on the set of Glen or Glenda. This project has "labor of love" written all over it, made by a fan for the enjoyment of other fans. Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy today.