Category: Hauls

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With Further Ado #390: Unexpected Comics – at the Record Store

With Further Ado #390: Unexpected Comics – at the Record Store

Posted on by Ed Catto

It’s that time of year when we’re hip deep into marketing ITHACON. After all, it is just a few weeks away. One of the less glamorous aspects of marketing and promotion, in this age of digital marketing and creativity-at-our-fingertips, is the old-fashioned tactic of dropping off postcards and hanging posters at places where potential attendees might frequent. You know, comic shops, book stores, libraries, craft breweries, wineries…the list goes on and on.

And record stores, of course. There’s a local place called Autumn Leaves that sells used books and it’s “bolted on” to a place called Angry Mom that sells used records. I was dropping off postcards there and couldn’t help but notice a table in the back with stacks of all sorts of old rock & movie magazines. Music Magazines, old movie magazines and even Sports Illustrated. Everything was just two bucks.

I rescued a couple of old Rolling Stone Magazines, an SI and the very last issue of Crawdaddy. They are all glorious!

But I wasn’t expecting the comic connections that awaited me in these magazines. For example:

Clark Kent vs. Superman – Back in the day, print ads with clever headlines and words, a lot of words, extolling the virtues of the product were pretty common. The humble copywriter was a dominant creative in those days.  I love this JBL ad with the superhero secret identity comparison. Could anyone ever get away with that these days? Continue reading “With Further Ado #390: Unexpected Comics – at the Record Store” →

With Further Ado #209: Actual Comics at SDCC

With Further Ado #209: Actual Comics at SDCC

Posted on by Ed Catto

There’s a certain number of critical conversations, many would categorize it as “moaning”, amongst longtime fans that San Diego Comic-Con isn’t about comics anymore.  Some fans of traditional comic get overwhelmed by all the media hype and complain that SDCC has lost its way.

Of course, it’s easy to get overwhelmed, especially when industry publications, like Adweek, celebrate all the Pop-Ups surrounding the convention center.  I’m not sure I agree with their “Top Nine” Activations/Pop-Ups, but their recent listing is here.

I’m fascinated by everything at San Diego Comic-Con. I love the big ideas presented and promoted at the show, as well as the smaller, oddball collectibles, original art, and back issues.

So, my best shopping was with a back issue dealer who had “reader copies” of comics priced for a dollar.  (Reader copies simply refer to comics that aren’t in the pristine condition that many collectors seek out.) What a deal! Each comic cost only $2.50.  Let me celebrate these treasures that I rescued, and maybe you will agree that San Diego Comic-Con, while not exclusively about comics, still is a great place for comics.

Around The World Under the Sea – This is a 1964 Dell comic is based on a movie I never heard of. But maaaaaan, I wish I could’ve seen it at a drive-in!  It’s kind of Jules Verne-y. But it starred Shirley Eaton, who the whole world will always remember from Goldfinger, so it is sort of James Bond-y too.  Here’s the trailer.  The cover has all those things that teenage me and my teenage buddies needed in a movie: Scuba guys fighting, sea monsters and a girl in a bikini.  I was crestfallen when I realized the interior pages were by Jack Sparling. He’s never been my favorite. In his defense, I will say he just nails the Lloyd Bridges likenesses. Continue reading “With Further Ado #209: Actual Comics at SDCC” →

With Further Ado #205: Summertime Highlights

With Further Ado #205: Summertime Highlights

Posted on by Ed Catto

Hey, I know you’re rushing off to the beach, or trying to get out of work a little early today. So, this week is just a highlight reel of some cool things:

I also just received the 2022 Steve Rude Sketchbook. WOW!  It was part of his most recent Kickstarter. I miss the days of seeing Steve and his wife at San Diego Comic-Con and buying a sketchbook during the annual pilgrimage. But you know what, getting anything from Steve Rude in the mail is always cause for rejoicing! He’s got all sorts of things on his website and his next Kickstarter starts on July 14th .

Shelly Bond (did you know she’s a proud Ithaca College graduate?) has a fabulous new book out called Filth and Grammar: The Comic Book Editor’s Secret Handbook.

It’s kind of a how-to-edit comics, but I think it’s a “new must” for every creator looking to break in. The Kickstarter was looking to raise $20,000 and it overdelivered with over $85,000. Pretty impressive, right?  You can still purchase this one on her site here.

I rescued a few paperbacks from my friends at Wonderland Comics in Rochester. It’s a great little comic shop that always seems to have some lost treasures out for sale.  This loot was just great:

I found four Flash Gordon paperbacks. These tell the prose version from Alex Raymond’s wonderful strip. You might think that Flash Gordon without the art is kind of pointless, but ever since I read the Avon paperback version of The Lion Men of Mongo (when I was a sixth grader), I’ve been hooked. Most of the adaptations were written by Ron Goulart and with wonderful George Wilson covers. Continue reading “With Further Ado #205: Summertime Highlights” →

With Further Ado #171: Come Fly With Me

With Further Ado #171: Come Fly With Me

Posted on by Ed Catto

I found this kooky little comic in a bargain bin at Ken Wheaton’s Empire Comic Fest last weekend. It’s a promotional comic for American Airlines, presumably given away to young kids to keep them busy during a plane ride.  This is the issue of Harvey’s AstroComics from 1975. Although sometimes they also spell it as Astro Comics.

I found it absolutely charming.

Despite the fact, that when you really think about it, one of the main characters is a dead child. I am not sure what Casper’s official origin story was at this point, or if he even had one.  But isn’t it kind of creepy to encourage a young kid (maybe it’s their first time on airplane) to read a story about a deceased little boy?

This promotional comic includes a team-up story with Richie Rich and Casper. I didn’t realize they shared adventures, but apparently they often did. In fact, Harvey published  a comic called Richie Rich & Casper that ran for 45 issues in the 70s. Kind of like Harvey’s very own version of World’s Finest Comics, I guess.

Of note: the team-up story is from Richie Rich & Casper #20, and most of the stories included are reprinted from past Harvey comics.

But Astro Comics #1 was designed to keep kids even busier with several innocuously fun American Airlines pages (i.e., corporate propaganda).  Things like a connect-the-dots activity page, a “Story of your Flight Attendant” text page, another text piece called “All about your Flight Crew” and an American Astro Comic Flight Quiz.  This quiz has questions like “Whose football team does Joe Namath play for?”*

The back cover might just be a milestone. I think it’s the very first Back Sketch Cover! Could it be? I do need to do a little more research before I wake up Overstreet’s J.C. Vaughn at 2:00 am with this amazing “find”.

But can you imagine if every kid on a plane got a free comic to read during their flight? Oh sure, they might rather play with their phone, but wow – what an introduction to comics that would be.

Hot Stuff

One more thing: I love this Hot Stuff cover!  One of my fellow faculty members, at Ithaca College’s School of Business has great memories of reading Hot Stuff comics. He’s not a “comics guy”, per se, but he got a few issues for his young son. I make it point to rescue any issues of Hot Stuff I find in bargain boxes at comic shops (like the excellent Heroes Your Mom Threw Out in Elmira or Wonderland Comics in Rochester) and pass it along to my co-worker. I recently grabbed a couple of issues with that in mind, but I love this cover so much I had to find a spot for it in my collection!

*The answer to this question ties into one of the American Airlines destinations, but you have to unscramble the answer.   It is listed as “weN rYko”.

Give Comics Hope Is Still Going Strong

Give Comics Hope Is Still Going Strong

Posted on by Bob Harrison

As we head further into the weirdest Thanksgiving week in memory a lot of people are trying for some way to fill their time while frantically scrolling through an unending deluge of Black Friday ads, we are here to point out some great options from Give Comics Hope.

GIVE COMICS HOPE is an charitable initiative that is rallying together our comics community to help local comic book shops. Our own Ed Catto has been involved from the beginning and wrote about it here. There are plenty of eBay auctions going on for some excellent classic comics. The proceeds will go to support local comic shops in coordination with the Book Industry Charitable Donation (BINC). Continue reading “Give Comics Hope Is Still Going Strong” →