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David Drake, a celebrated potter whose work dates back to the 1800s, is at the center of a story that is all too familiar for many descendants of enslaved people.
Commonly known as Dave The Potter, Drake’s work is revered by collectors for its quality and the many etchings he risked his life to engrave into them. Some works simply feature his signature, while others have short poems that provide insights into his journey. According to The Washington Post, Drake may have created over 40,000 pieces throughout his life, most of which he was not paid for. Today, his work sells for hundreds of thousands of dollars and in 2021, one of his inscribed pieces sold for $1.5 million.
So, who is profiting from his labor?
That is the question being asked by the Whitners, a family contacted in 2016 by a genealogist who revealed that they were descendants of David Drake. “It really saddened me,” Daisy Whitner, one of the family members, said to The Washington Post. “I wondered how much blood and sweat he put into making these pieces. He had to shed tears as he was wondering where his relations were, who had been torn away from him.” It was also sobering for them to find out that his works had been commissioned during slavery, making it commonplace for him to go unpaid for his talents.
“We had no idea,” said Whitner’s brother, John N. Williams. “We knew about slavery because we read it in the history books. But to know your ancestor was a part of that opened a flood of emotions. One was a joy that you know who they are and the other was sorrow for what they went through.”
Although teenage Jaime Reyes is the current Blue Beetle in both comics and film, the new Blue Beetle trailer shows he was not the first to wear the mantle. In one scene, two Blue Beetle costumes are seen on mannequins, and they are very comics accurate. This suggests that in the film, just as in the comics, there were two previous Beetles before Jaimie, and he’s a legacy hero. But who are the first two costumed adventurers who used that name? They have a long comics history, with the first Blue Beetle going all the way back to the 1930s.
Blue Beetle I (Dan Garret)
The original Blue Beetle debuted in 1939 from Fox Comics, a mere few months after Batman debuted at DC. And just a year after Superman. The original Beetle was Dan Garret, and there was shockingly little that was unique about Dan. He was a vigilante with no powers, who fought criminals at night. Garret was avenging the murder of his father, a police officer murdered by criminals. Yes, it’s all very Batman.
He eventually got a bulletproof suit, and took special vitamins that give him super strength (much like DC’s Hourman) to give him something more interesting. His girlfriend was a feisty reporter in the Lois Lane tradition. He even worked with a kid sidekick named Sparky, a clear Robin knock-off. At least he had a “Beetle Light,” which he flashed at his enemies using his emblem, something which later inspired Spider-Man. So for once, Beetle inspired another superhero, instead of the other way around.
Dan Garret might not have been original or very interesting, but he was popular. At least for a short time. His comic series ran for 11 years and had 60 issues total, and he had a brief comic strip and a serialized radio show. Back in the Golden Age, the latter two things meant you were a big break-out comic book star. But post World War II, superhero popularity sank, and they canceled Blue Beetle. Eventually, comics publisher Fox went out of business, and for a long time, that was the end of the Dan Garret Blue Beetle.
Blue Beetle I (Take Two) Dan Garrett
In the mid-sixties, Blue Beetle came back, now published by Charlton Comics. But they almost entirely revamped the character. His last name was now spelled Garrett, and he was an archeologist, not a police officer. He discovered an ancient scarab in an old Egyptian tomb, in an origin similar to DC Comics’ Doctor Fate. The scarab gave him super powers, and he fought crime for a few years. But Dan Garrett with two T’s was not as successful as his previous incarnation. So Charlton found a new hero to take up the mantle not long after.
Blue Beetle II Ted Kord
In 1966, the dream team of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, who had made The Amazing Spider-Man a smash hit for Marvel Comics, parted ways. Ditko went off to Charlton Comics, where he got to revamp several characters. Among the first was Blue Beetle. Under Ditko’s watch, Beetle got a new secret identity and costume, as well as a new origin story. This Blue Beetle was Ted Kord, a student of Dan Garrett’s. He was a genius inventor and athlete, and when he discovered his uncle was a criminal planning on taking over the world, he teamed up with Dan Garrett to stop him. Garrett died and passed on the scarab to Ted Kord, who became the second Blue Beetle.
Interestingly, the scarab never worked for Ted. But he was still the Blue Beetle, and used his gadgets and training (and eventually, his vast wealth from his company) to fight crime. Ditko designed his new costume, and his favorite mode of transport, the hovering Bug ship. A lot of the Ted Kord version of Blue Beetle would inspire Nite Owl II in Alan Moore’s Watchmen. His solo series only ran for five issues in 1967, but in the ‘80s, DC Comics bought publisher Chartlon Comics’ characters, and Ted had a whole new life.
Blue Beetle Becomes a DC Hero
Following the multiversal event Crisis on Infinite Earths, Ted Kord became part of the main DC Universe. He got his own ongoing series, which lasted two years. But his real popularity happened when he became a member of the Justice League International. The writers of that book teamed him up with Booster Gold, another hero with a recently canceled series. The two became best buds, a pair of lovable losers who went on many an adventure together. When Ted died in 2005’s Infinite Crisis, he left the scarab for Jaime Reyes. And the rest is history. Ted did eventually get better from the whole “being dead” thing though.
We don’t know what role the previous Blue Beetles will have in the upcoming film, beyond a reference to their existence. We know at some point, someone takes Ted’s Bug ship out for a ride. And The film’s villain, Victoria Kord (Susan Sarandon) is supposedly Ted Kord’s sister. Will we see Ted in the flesh in this movie? Rumors suggest Jason Sudeikis is playing him. With a Booster Gold series coming in James Gunn’s new DCU, we hope to see Ted and Booster together. We’ll find out when Blue Beetle hits theaters in August.
The post Who Are the First Two Blue Beetles in the BLUE BEETLE Movie? appeared first on Nerdist.
It’s another ordinary day in Hollywood, the sky is blue, the palm trees are swaying, and I got to preview the brand new, super secret trailer for Warner Brother’s highly anticipated Blue Beetle.
I admit, I wasn’t as versed in this particular DC superhero, but the more I learn the more my excitement grows. He’s an infusion of freshness that DC needs after a run of unimpressive features.
If you’re unfamiliar, the Blue Beetle we meet is the third incarnation, created in 2006 by DC Comics. Jaime Reyes is a young teenager who discovers the mysterious Blue Beetle scarab. He learns that when activated not only does it morph into a suit of protective battle gear, but it also allows for time travel in space! The film marks one of the projects in DC’s Elseworlds, alternative universe stories that exist before and during Crisis on Infinite Earths.
The film also signifies the last films before the James Gunn era officially begins. Blue Beetle along with Shazam! Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, and Joker: Folie a Deux will be transitory films that will mark a new direction for DC. In the comics Blue Beetle joins Teen Titans so it’s hopeful that we’ll see that come to fruition in future projects.
The trailer itself is magnificent. Though I know Blue Beetle is a DC property, I got Ms. Marvel vibes from the trailer. The family dynamic mixed with the world of superheroes creates such a strong bond to the film. At the beginning of the trailer we see Jaime going for an interview and his family is literally cheering for him as he goes in. Later his dad (George Lopez) says, “You were supposed to be getting us a job!” The “us” implies a familiar connection (and intrusion) that is delightful to see in a film like this. We also see that Blue Beetle will get his own city. Like Batman’s Gotham or Superman’s Metropolis, what was once El Paso is now the beautiful Palmera City.
Other than the rumor that Susan Sarandon will play the villainous Victoria Kord (a potential relative of former Blue Beetle Ted Kord?), there’s little that’s known officially about the project. Thankfully we got more answers. During the special early access Q&A we got to ask questions of director Angel Manuel Soto and the Blue Beetle himself, Xolo Maridueña.
Moderated by actor and comics fan Tiffany Smith, the panel discussed the amazing cast, Jaime having a city of his own to protect, and how the family is unique, but also relatable.
What makes this amazing cast so special?
Angel Manuel Soto: One thing that we really wanted to do with the cast was to be as authentic as we could. We wanted to tap into the three generations of this immigrant family. Xolo [Jaime] was born here, and he’s Mexican American. And so is Belissa, who plays Milagros the sister. Then you have characters like George Lopez, who’s been here for a minute, and he’s like, a national treasure! And Elpidia [Carrillo] who plays the mom — George plays the uncle — and then I really wanted to get what I consider to be the best actor from Mexico City, which is [Adriana] Barraza. So I really wanted to bring all the people I really respect from Mexico that inspired me to become a filmmaker.
More about the cast chemistry.
Soto: We wanted to be as authentic as possible, not the Hallmark cookie cutter Latinos. Something that feels like, yeah, that’s my uncle, I can totally relate. [The cast] took the film and they made it theirs. They took their fun very seriously, and I think that’s one of the things that I really love about working together with Xolo. That authentic chemistry from a collective feels like something I grew up with.
Xolo Maridueña: We see some of these other superheroes who were able to hide from their family the fact that they’re a superhero. But as you’ll see in the trailer, [Jaime’s] family is right there from the first transformation, so to come through this journey together is something that we haven’t seen before in superhero movies. That really is the beating heart of this movie. It was my first time being a superhero, and coming into a character like this — you’ll see in the movie — it can’t happen without the family. And I think that’s a theme that — whether or not you’re Latino — transcends ethnicity, transcends color of skin. I think that’s something that we can all relate to. It’s undeniably and unapologetically Latino, everyone will understand Milagros, everyone will understand Jaime because they are people who we’ve interacted with in our daily life. The problems that they’re facing are problems that we know. The stuff that you see in this movie is all very tangible and feels rooted in today’s world.
Soto: My culture is not a buzzword. You know, we exist and we coexist. It’s always nice to see something that we’re kind of used to seeing with other superheroes that we love and cherish, but what if we see it my way? Our way? Latino is not a genre, so this is a superhero film that happens to have Latinos at the core of it.
Why Soto choose IMAX expanded aspect ratio.
Soto: Because IMAX is the sh*t! [Laughs.] It’s just an immersive aspect, right? I try to be as immersive as I can with the projects that I do. And the scope of IMAX allows you to be swallowed up into the frame. It almost feels like my relationship with cinema. It’s very spiritual in a way. So it always feels like you can have a physical connection to it. In the same way that we try our best to bring the audience in, and come up to this dance with the stories and the characters, IMAX just makes it like if you’re dancing with your partner. I’m used to being involved with people, but when you’re dancing with your partner, it feels like you’re dancing with just me along in the room with it.
How is Xolo preparing for the changes his life will endure?
Maridueña: A lot of it honestly is just spending time with my family. I’ve been blessed that my friends and family I’ve had most of my life. I feel fairly well adjusted. I understand the social part of it, and the effect that being part of a world like DC has on an individual, but at the end of the day, there’s nothing that brings me more joy than getting to sit and watch a movie with my family. Also, I understand that the movie is not about me, but it’s about opening the door. And it’s about showing a group of people that you deserve to have your story be told and you are just as important as stories that we’ve been seeing for years.
Check out the trailer below:
Blue Beetle will swarm into theaters August 18th.