Tracy Timeline...

1931:  Chester Gould’s detective strip Dick Tracy debuts


1944:  First appearances of Gravel Gertie and Vitamin Flintheart


 1945:  First appearance of B.O. Plenty.  He and Gravel Gertie are wed the same year.


1946:  Debut of Diet Smith, Tracy’s wealthy industrialist friend who provides Dick with his newest technical innovations, beginning with the two-way wrist radio.


1947:  B.O. and Gravel’s daughter, Sparkle Plenty, is born Tracy conducts the first closed-circuit TV police line up.


1948:  Dick Tracy employs the Telegard, a portable, antennaless television burglar alarm Sam Catchem debuts as Tracy’s sidekick, replacing Pat Patton, who has become Chief of Police.


1948:  Tracy operates the first battery-powered TV camera.


1949:  Tess Truehart and Dick finally marry.

1951:  Dick and Tess’s daughter, Bonnie Braids, is born.


1953:  TV criminal show-up makes its first appearance.


1959:  Gould wins his first National Cartoonists Society “Reuben” award for Dick Tracy.


1962:  The Magnetic Space Coupe, the first engineless car, takes Dick to the moon.


1963:  Debut of Miss Moon Maid.


1964:  Two-way wrist TV.


1968:  Voice-o-Graph invented.  Matches criminal voiceprints.


1969:  Gould abandons his moon-oriented storylines as the Apollo missions show no life there.

1977:  Gould captures his second “Reuben” for Tracy, and retires from all but a consulting role on the strip at year’s end.  Max Allan Collins is named his replacement for scripting beginning with the new year.  Longtime Gould assistant Rick Fletcher to handle the art.


1978:  Moon Maid, now Junior’s wife and mother of his infant child, is killed by a car bomb meant for Dick.


1981:  Junior Tracy remarries, this time to Sparkle Plenty.


1983:  Fletcher passes away, and Dick Locher takes over drawing chores.


1985:  Gould dies in his adopted hometown of Woodstock, Illinois.


1986:  Two-way wrist computer makes its debut in the Tracy arsenal.


1988:  Sparkle Plenty, Jr. born to Junior and Sparkle.

Dick Tracy Folds!

Now you can zen out by practicing a little cube art in the privacy of your own cubicle with the number one character find of 1931!
Just go here
and get started!

Dick Tracy meets Sin City...

I'm not 100% on board with the story here, but the custom work is worth posting it all. It's fanfic to go along with the custom this guy did. I cannot get in touch with the author but if you are he (or she) please let me know and I'll give credit (or take it down if you like).

Dick Tracy enters his home to find it in shambles. It looks as if a struggle had just taken place. He frantically runs into the kitchen and to his horror he finds the lifeless remains of his family on the floor. As the sudden shock sets in, Tracy hears the shattering of a vase in the living room. With his revolver drawn, he sprints into action just to find a flat-headed silhouette rush out the door. Tracy was too stunned to give chase. He couldn’t believe what he saw. “I thought I had killed Flattop” Tracy thought to himself in utter fright. As police came, the investigation came and went but the unresponsive Tracy wouldn’t budge from his position.

The next day at the station…

Pat, “What happened yesterday Tracy?”


Tracy, “I don’t know chief. I came home to find my family murdered…”

Pat, “What else happened? You stood there like a deer in headlights Tracy”

Tracy, (rubbing his eyes) “ I don’t know, as I scrambled to the living room I thought I saw a shadow of Flattop run out the door. I couldn’t believe it.

Pat, “Well you shouldn’t believe it Tracy. You killed Flattop Jones a long time ago.”

Tracy, “I know but I saw it with my own two eyes. It couldn’t be an illusion.”

Pat, “Tracy, I know you’re going through some rough times right now. I think it would be best if you went on a little vacation.”

Tracy, “I can’t do that chief! I have to find my family’s killer.”

Pat, “Tracy, don’t worry about it. I have the whole police force on this one. We’ll find the killer in no time. Just go home and rest.”

Tracy couldn’t rest. Not until he finds the one who killed his family…

Several months have passed and Tracy was working on his case day and night. He couldn’t eat or sleep till finally one day he found a solid lead. All his research and studying had lead him to an abandoned factory in the middle of the city. As Tracy cautiously entered the building, he slowly pulled out his gun. He heard voices coming from another room and he quietly went to investigate it. As he peeks in through a door, he saw silhouettes of three people standing around talking amongst themselves. Two brawny figures and in between stood a short flat-headed one. Tracy busted the door down and took out the 2 big guys leaving him alone with the flattop. “Get into the light!” exclaimed Tracy. As the shadowy figure exposed itself to the light, Tracy saw a dainty figure with a grin on her face. “Hello Tracy,” Said the flattop woman, “Congratulations in finding me. In what honor do I owe to this little visit of yours?” Tracy’s surprised face quickly turns into a vengeful one. “You killed my family!” Tracy said with unreserved anger, “Now I’m here to kill you.” The girl laughed, “Hah and you thought you could come here alone and avenge their death did you?” She reaches behind her and before she could do anything else, Tracy quickly draws his gun and fires at the girl fatally wounding her. She drops to the ground. She motions Tracy to come closer to her. As Tracy gets next to the girl he scoops her up in his arms. She slowly pulls out what she was reaching for and hands it to Tracy. “This is a list of all the people in our family.” She explains, “Our family spans more than what you could ever imagine. After you killed my father, word had spread and now the whole Flattop lineage wants your life.” Tracy couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He unfolds the paper to find a whole page of names. “I wasn’t the one who killed your family,” explained the girl, “I know who it was but I am not going to tell you. I’m going to leave you tortured not knowing who your family’s killer is. I’ve done my job. I’ve got my revenge.” As Jones’ daughter faded out to meet death, Tracy couldn’t bare not knowing who killed his family. He shook her vigorously, “Tell me, tell me who did it. Who killed them… WHO KILLED MY FAMILY!!!” And with no response from the girl, Tracy picked up a Tommy that was next to one of the big guys and exited the factory. As Tracy walked away, the factory behind him began to burn up. Tracy had only one thing on his mind…

“I’m going to find the one who murdered my family and took my life away from me…

…even if it means I have to hunt down and kill every single person on this list.”

fin.

New Dick Tracy Movie prospects look grim...

Don't get your hopes up for a new Tracy movie anytime soon as this WENN.COM article suggests:



'Dick Tracy' lawsuit to go on
By WENN.COM
A federal judge has given the green light for Warren Beatty's legal battle over the rights to Dick Tracy to continue after refusing to dismiss the star's suit against the franchise's former owner.

In 2006, bosses at Tribune Media Services, a unit of bankrupt newspaper publisher Tribune, took legal action against Beatty, alleging he "wrongly claims" to have exclusive motion picture and television rights to the police detective brand - despite buying the broadcast rights in 1985.

The company claimed that as Beatty had not made any "productive use" of the brand, the rights should be handed back to Tribune if he failed to begin production on a new Tracy project within two years. Although the actor/director intended to follow up his 1990 film - which starred Madonna and Robert De Niro - with a TV special, the production never came to fruition.

In November, a judge gave the actor permission to press forward with legal action. Lawyers for Tribune demanded that the case be thrown out, while Beatty asked for the company to be penalised for seeking a dismissal.

However, U.S. District Court Judge Dean D. Pregerson decided last week that the case should go ahead, ignoring the pleas of both parties. He said, "There is a substantial controversy between the parties warranting the issuance of a declaratory judgment".

Black and White and Red with envy...

Alright, here's the deal.
First, you need to go visit the Shocker Toys website
here
.
Then you need to collect your hard-earned quids (I know you work hard. Really, I do) and purchase one or more of the awesome Dick Tracy figures they have had the kindness to offer us. All new Dick Tracy merch needs to be backed by fans everywhere so they'll make more!
Support Tracy and he supports you! (which sounds better than going all first-name with that phrase)