MARS RAVELO

" Darna's Creator Mars Ravelo "

Mars Ravelo was born on October 9,1916 when the Philippines was still American Territory. Mars went trough a life of hardship and drop out of high school, vowing to be number one in what ever he did. That was excellent visioning.

Mars started out as a cartoonist, then as a writer, and later on as editor -in- chief for two major publications houses and even for several film companies. Ravelo was the highest paid comics writer during his time. He later established his own company, RAR, to give him more elbow room with more obras.

Mars Ravelo used to say that he wanted to impart " the highest form of values to the lowest tier of our society with the lowest form of literature" that was comics.

His contributions to the Filipino art world are quite remarkable. Some of his achievements are the classic fantasy of Darna the super heroine, Dyesebel the love-lorn mermaid, and Kaptain Barbel the super hero. Furthermore, he also created another classic drama about a young orphaned girl named Roberta, the movie was a huge success that made Sampaguita Pictures one of the biggest film outfit in the 50's. Vilma Santos starred in "Trudis Liit" and became an instant hit. Not to mention the unforgetable award-winning movie adaptation of Alicia Vergel's, Basahang Ginto. Additional feather to his hat is the controversial film about a homosexual in Lea productions, Tubog sa Ginto, another comic's adaptation. And who can forget the love story of Maruja which was also immortalized on silver screen several times.

Not only Mars Ravelo made us cry and played our imagination through his fantasy creations, but he also tickled our funny bones with Facifica Falayfay, and the lovable dou of Jack & Jill. His creations are his legacy to the world.

RAVELO ICONOCLAST

Mars Ravelo is a man very hard to ignore. Especially when discussing comics. He is a man you either like or hate fervently. It is difficult to be indifferent about him. Probably because of the impact his ideas had in the industry; probably because of creative innovations he introduced into it; probably because his ideas had upset so many “sacred” traditions, which, until he came along, had the force of biblical injunctions; probably because of his monumental ego, or the fact that he is not above cursing, when angry, or even when happy. Mars joined the industry in 1939 w/ his first comics strip "BEMBOY" for Mabuhay Extra. Ravelo is considered by many as a pioneering giant in the field. Because his entry produced shock waves which influenced future comics writers and artists not to mention trends in comics stories. His influence is still being felt up to now, inspite of the emergence of other, younger gifted writers and artists.
To understand the impact of Ravelo in comics, it is necessary to understand the conditions prevalent in the field in its infancy. At that time the “tayo-tayo” system was in full force in all of the major publications. You just didn’t make it if you didn’t belong to the club. This milieu, understandably, produced mediocre writers, mediocre artists and worse comics. But nobody minded. Everybody was content with the way things were. Everybody, that is, except a perennially unemployed young man - Ravelo.
The young Ravelo was a dispirited non-entity in the later part of 30's to 19 40's. He had held a variety of low-paying, insignificant jobs, then, realizing he was bound for nowhere fast took stock of himself. Years later, while reminiscing about the event he would relate: “I asked myself what I, was good at. And I came to the conclusion that I was good at two things – drawing and writing. And it dawned on me that maybe I was fated to excel in only one place : The comics”.
His first attempt at comics work nearly ended in disaster. He presented another comics strip "RITA" to the major publications. And got promptly turned down (Remember that he was not a member of the club) Clodualdo del Mundo (then the big man at Ramon Roces Publications) and company, wouldn’t even deign to look at it. The same fate befell the strip at Bulaklak Publications.
While being turned down the second time at Bulaklak, Ravelo spotted the owner, Aling Bating (Beatriz Guballa). That venerable woman was having lice picked from her hair by a minion. Ravelo went to where she was and, voice quivering in sheer desperation, pleaded: “Please take a look at this,” while thrusting the strip at the woman.
“I”, said the woman imperiously, “have editors to do that. Show it to them.”
“I already have,” replied the flustered Ravelo,. “But they turned it down.”
“Why?” asked the woman, as she crushed a kuto.
“I do not know. They have not even read it. Please spare a minute of your time and read it. Please…”
Perhaps it was Ravelo’s bold approach. Or it could have been his whining plea. But at length the doubting woman reached for the strip.
The rest is history.
After reading a few panels of the strip the woman was by turns giggling, then chortling and later nearly rolling on the floor, choking with laughter. The strip, on command of Aling Bating was included in the first issue of Bulaklak Magazine.
It was an instant hit.
In 1947, the strip, Rita, which told of the antics of a smart-assed brat, struck a familiar chord in the Filipino reader for the situations portrayed in it were typically Filipino, with Filipino actions and reactions. Ravelo’s first strip, it was also his first bull’s eye against the then prevailing trend in comics writing, a derivative kind of writing that was patterned after American and other alien models.
At that time the leading vernacular magazine was Liwayway. Pretty soon it wasn’t leading anymore either in circulation or popularity. An apprehensive Don Ramon Roces ordered a survey and the awful truth was revealed: The reason for Bulaklak’s ascendancy, and Liwayway’s consequent loss of readership, was Ravelo’s Rita.
Don Ramon, an unwitting victim of the imbroglio, soon learned the Roces Publications was given first chance at Ravelo’s runaway stip, but that some numbskull had turned down Rita. He now wanted to know which numbskull had done it. Del Mundo and company understandably kept mum about their part in the brouhaha and professed innocence. Sadly, Don Ramon never did get the satisfaction of getting his hands on the culprit(s).
For a while Ravelo waxed fat (and contented) at Bulaklak. He continued to script, pencil, letter and ink his stip. Everybody at Bulaklak loved him. For wasn’t he pulling in the shekels? It was too good to last.
An editor, jealous of Ravelo’s popularity, picked a quarrel with him and he left Bulaklak in a huff. The chore of continuing the Rita strip fell on the shoulders of an untalented hack. And predictably, the magazine’s popularity (and circulation) took a nosedive soon after.
Meanwhile, Ravelo was being wooed tojoin the Roces Publication. But the by-this-time famous author, still remembering yesterday’s hurt, did not comment on Don Ramon’s overtures. Not at once anyway. But at length the writer relented (for let’s face it, he had a family to feed and take care of) and so he decided to join the Roces bandwagon.
He was to stay with the Roces Publications for nearly 2 decades. And it was while there that he did some of his most unforgettable works. But it was not to be at the start.
In the beginning, the powers that be at Roces wanted to have a strip similar to the one he had left behind at Bulaklak. And some ‘genius´at Roces even suggested to the author that he write about the adventures of teenagers. Ravelo thought it would be such a drag, especially when he was told to pattern it after American teenage characters. So he hibernated for awhile as he thought of something that would get off the launch pad, and at the same time different form his hit character Rita.
He came up with Buhay Pilipino.
It was Ravelo’s 2nd hit. It told of situations that an ordinary Filipino family would encounter. But presented with the Ravelo touch, it was hilarious in the extreme. The strip appeared in Liwayway magazine and came to be a circulation booster from the start.
For long years Ravelo worked on the strip. At the beginning, doing it was pure joy. But it soon got to be just another chore he had to get over with as fast as he could. For by this time Ravelo was being besieged by personal demons: he wanted to write novels, among other things.
He submitted the manuscript of a novel to Clodualdo Del Mundo (again), hopeful that the man would at least pass judgment on it. But Del Mundo merely flipped the manuscript into a drawer and forgot all about it. For 6 long months the manuscript gathered dust in Del Mundo’s desk. Until, by a fortunate accident it fell on the hands of Don Ramon. And again, history was made.
Ravelo’s first novel was Roberta and it was about the travails of a love-starved, misbegotten child. It was to prove to be the most memorable of all his opuses, and was Sampaguita Pictures’ salvation. That movie outfit was all but down and out, its studios having been gutted by a fire. Gambling on Ravelo’s first novel, it soon had a hit in its hands, which enabled it to literally emerge phoenix-like from the ashes.
Roberta was followed by another hit, Darna. This character, inpired by Superman, was to prove the most durable among his creations and also the most financially rewarding. Darna also had another memorable feature about it: It teamed him up for the first time with a struggling comics artist the soon-to-be-famous Nestor Redondo. (By this time, Ravelo had ceased drawing his storied and Roberta had been illustrated by Elpidio Torres).
Other hit novels followed: Basahang Ginto, Jack and Jill, Mambo Jambo, Silveria, Maruja, Booma, Captain Barbel, Lastikman and Dyesebel. And then an ironic turn of events made him give up the P10,000 a month job he was by this time enjoying at Roces.
Aling Bating who was responsible for giving Ravelo his first break in the field came up with a proposal would he take over Bulaklak? Bulaklak managed through the years by a cable of non-talents, had at long last gone to where it was destined to go, given the circumstances of its ill-starred life – oblivion. Ravelo would and did.
For Ravelo it was the completion of a cycle. Bulaklak gave him his first big break and he was back to try to save it if possible. And save it he did, in the best comic-book fashion complete with a happy ending.
He is now the Bulaklak Magazine publisher, and he turns out 5 titles besides.
By all standards, Ravelo is an unqualified success: as comics writer and artist and author of novels and finally, as publisher. He earns “quite a lot” form his writings, and his magazines turn in quite a pretty penny. And he did it all by breaking his idols: He was the first to break away from the American model by presenting stories purely from the Filipino point of view; he was the first to write about taboo subjects in local comics such as homosexuality and incest. And he did it with art. Or at least in the most artistic manner, without condescending or patronizing. He did in it , in other words, with intelligence.
When comes such another?

BEMBOY

COMICS COVER 1