Polite Dissent

Ben Casey was published by Dell from 1962 to 1965. There were 10 issues total, all with a 12¢ price and a photo-cover. The comics were based on the Ben Casey television show that aired on ABC from 1961 to 1966. Ben Casey #9, titled “Crisis at 59 West!!!”, has a date of October-December 1964 and contains 32-pages of story. The writing and art are mediocre. The regular characters are drawn and written well, but the other characters seem more two-dimensional caricatures than anything else.

As the story begins, Dr. Zorba persuades Dr Casey to come for a ride in his new sports car. As they are driving, another car nearly runs them over and then crashes into a tree. Casey and Zorba drag the unconscious driver out of his car and transport him to the hospital. As they arrive at the hospital, Casey tells his co-worker that he suspects the patient is suffering from a case of paroxysmal cerebral dysrhythmia.

It turns out the patient is Junior Van Cleve, the son of rich and arrogant Cassius Van Cleve, a major hospital donor. Mr. Van Cleve arrives and immediately begins to throw his weight around. Soon he and Casey butt heads, and Casey finds himself forced off the case, or the hospital won’t get its annual donation check from the Van Cleves.

Meanwhile, the tests Casey has ordered come back and prove that he was right about Junior’s diagnosis. Of course, he and his fellow physicians can’t come right out and tell the patient what the diagnosis is. Instead, they throw around a succession of medical terms that were already archaic forty years ago.

Rich Mr. Van Cleve accuses Casey and the medical staff of making things up because they have diagnosed his son with 1) paroxysmal cerebral dysrhythmia, 2) recurrent disturbance of brain rhythm, 3) psychomotor seizures, and 4) psychic variant seizures. Of course all these terms mean the same thing: Junior has epilepsy.

Mr. Van Cleve refuses to believe this because “everyone knows it only effects [sic] half-wits and criminals!”

Incensed, Van Cleve decides to transfer his son to another hospital, but as they are leaving the hospital Junior suffers another seizure and Casey saves him. Van Cleve’s personal physician finally arrives and tells Mr. Van Cleve to back off, that Casey had the right diagnosis and treatment all along.

In the end, Mr. Van Cleve comes around and even offers Casey a position as Junior’s personal physician. Casey thanks Van Cleve, but says he’d rather stay where he is. “Hmmm,” says Mr. Van Cleve. “Until I locked horns with that Casey character, I thought the younger generation couldn’t even spell grit and determination! But he…You’ll have my check in the morning!”

This comic is more of a character story than a medical story. Most of the narrative concerns the conflict between Ben Casey and Mr. Van Cleve. What little medicine is shown is a mixed bag. The epilepsy is diagnosed correctly. While Casey and his co-workers use a great deal of technically correct terminology, most of it is horribly out-of-date, even for the 1960s (but this is done to set up a plot point). In terms of negatives, I’m surprised that Casey would drag the unconscious patient from the car without supporting his neck; he should know better considering that he is a neurosurgeon. Speaking of neurosurgeons, why is a patient with seizures being treated by a surgeon instead of a neurologist?

Finally, take a second and look back at Mr. Van Cleve’s last statement, where he praises Casey’s grit. Could this be it? The first of the grim and gritty comics? My vote is yes.