HOLY BATMOBILES, ROBIN!

 

 

Don't you just love the BATMOBILE? Doesn't everybody? I'm talking

about the 1966 Television Batmobile, of course! There's just something

about its sleek contours which are appealing to the eye. As everybody and

their granny knows by now, the car was customised by GEORGE BARRIS

from a 1955 FORD LINCOLN FUTURA especially for the ADAM WEST,

BURT WARD TV show of the '60s, still fondly remembered to this day.

 

The original Futura was designed by BILL SCHMIDT and JOHN NAJJAR,

and completely hand-built by GHIA in Turin, Italy, costing $250,000 at the

time. That's a far cry from the $4.62 million dollars that Barris recently sold

the original car for, having retained ownership since purchasing it a few years

after it was first built. (For only a dollar, or so legend has it.) Prior to George

acquiring it, the vehicle had tasted celluloid fame in 1959, when it featured

prominently in the film IT STARTED WITH A KISS, starring DEBBIE

REYNOLDS and CLARK KENT's dad, GLENN FORD.

   

This is a 'snap together' version by POLAR LIGHTS from a year or

so ago, which usually hangs on my wall. The surprising thing is, despite

looking like die-cast metal, it's actually made of styrene plastic and is as

light as a feather. I was giving it a dust and decided to snap a few photos

and share them with you here. I doubt that you can buy a better model of

the car than this nine inch long one (unless it's the MATTEL ELITE

larger scale diecast version - of which I have two - but that one

doesn't have figures). Nice, eh? Generous to a fault, that's me.

 

MIGHTY MARVEL COVER GALLERY - PART SEVEN...

 

 

Let us now return to the early days of 1973 and the glory that was

THE MIGHTY WORLD OF MARVEL in all its multi-faceted magnificence.

Just think - THE INCREDIBLE HULK, THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, THE

FANTASTIC FOUR, to say nothing of pin-ups, puzzle pages and piles

of powerhouse punch-ups, every week for a mere and measly 5 new

pence. Wow! We never had it so good! 

 

It wouldn't (it couldn't) last, of course. As the weeks wore on, the colour

pages dwindled in number, and before its first year was over, MWOM was

quite a dull looking affair in contrast to how it had started out. But that yet

lies ahead of us; for the moment, let us savour the dynamic delights of

Mighty Marvel Magic at its finest while we recall with nostalgic affection

the best years of our lives so very long ago! Onward!

 

PART FOUR OF SPIDER-MAN COMICS WEEKLY COVER GALLERY...

 

 

Hang loose, heroes - as STAN LEE would (and very often did) say! I

haven't abandoned the SPIDER-MAN COMICS WEEKLY cover gallery,

I've merely been waiting for the right moment to unleash upon you the

next cataclysmic chapter in this scintillating series - and here it is!

 

So, enjoy these 1973 presentations  of ol' SPIDEY and THOR, and

their charming coterie of cheerful chums with whom they did battle week

after week, back in the dim and distant days of over forty years ago. What

do you mean, you weren't there? Are you trying to make me feel old?

Sheesh! Gimme a break, for cryin' out loud. 

 

 

 

 

PART FOUR OF FOOM COVER & IMAGE GALLERY...

 

 

Admit it - you thought I'd forgotten, didn't you? O ye of little faith.

How could I possibly forget the next chapter in the unfolding saga of

FOOM covers and select pages which I lovingly scan and prepare for

your image-hungry eyes, and serve up fresh as the morning dew?

(Although sometimes, I have to confess, in the finest BLUE PETER

tradition, they're ones I prepared earlier.) 

 

The eleventh issue of Marvel's fabulous 'fanzine' featured the

dramatic announcement of the return of JACK KIRBY to MARVEL,

after his five year stint at DC COMICS. Unfortunately, Jack's come-

back was somewhat anti-climactic, and he never quite reached the

former heights of glory he had attained the first time 'round.

 

Anyway, enjoy reliving whatever memories (if any) these pulsating

pictures from the '70s stir up in the myriad mazes of your mind. And

if you weren't around at the time, don't worry - they're still well-worth

savouring in all their cataclysmic glory - even if it's for the very first

time! (After all, it's not your fault you weren't there.) 

  

 

 

THE LONELY MOUNTAIN...

 

 

You're looking at BEN LOMOND (the mountain in the distance),

taken on Saturday from the top of the street where I once lived back in

the '60s and early '70s. It was clearly visible from my back garden (and

perhaps even from my bedroom window if I stuck my head out), and as

I said in a previous post, when I first read THE HOBBIT, it was easy to

imagine that Ben Lomond was THE LONELY MOUNTAIN under which

the dragon SMAUG sat on hordes of treasure that BILBO BAGGINS

and his crew hoped to 'liberate'.

 

Isn't imagination a wonderful thing? Anyway, just thought I'd share

the photo with you here. While I was taking it (minutes after leaving a

friend's house), some fat brat on a bicycle shouted a rude name at me

as he whizzed past. I sincerely hope the cheeky little b*gger crashed

into a lamppost as he sped away. That's what I'd call instant justice!

PART FOUR OF THE INCREDIBLE JOHNNY FUTURE...

 

 

Nah, you don't need to read any long-winded waffle from me regarding

the awesome artwork of LUIS BERMEJO on the magnificent JOHNNY

FUTURE strip from the pages of FANTASTIC back in the swinging '60s.

Just enjoy!

DALEK DESIGNER RAYMOND CUSICK PASSES AWAY...

 

 

I've just learned the sad news that RAY CUSICK, designer
of TERRY NATION's iconic mutant monsters THE DALEKS, died
on February 21st at the age of 84. All children owe him a huge debt

for enriching their childhoods with his perfect realisation of DOCTOR
WHO's scary inhabitants of the planet SKARO. Sadly, he never got rich
from his inspired interpretation of Nation's description of the transformed
KALEDS, as he was a BBC employee at the time and it was just another
day's work for him. Apparently he received a £100 bonus as a token of
appreciation from Auntie Beeb, but considering the many millions derived
from Dalek merchandise, it seems they didn't appreciate him as much as
he deserved. Raymond himself never made an issue of it 'though, and
was content merely to be recognised as the designer of the metal-
cased mutants. Mr Cusick is survived by two daughters, seven
grandchildren and several million Daleks.

 

 R.I.P. Raymond Patrick Cusick. 1928 - 2013.

WILL SOMEONE PLEASE GIVE JOHNNY FLAGG A FIGHTING CHANCE...?

 

Front cover to TITAN edition

 

Back in 1989, I bought the MARVEL hardback featuring the FIGHTING

AMERICAN stories by SIMON & KIRBY which had first appeared in the

1950s. Some of the pages had been very obviously touched-up and, in some
cases, re-created by tracing from the published comics. Some captions and
word balloons had been re-lettered also, meaning that the book, 'though
worthy, was hardly archival in nature.

 

Back cover to TITAN edition

 

Then, a couple of years back, over on the Simon & Kirby Museum,

restorer HARRY MENDRYK posted 'before' and 'after' examples of

pages from a new Fighting American reprint book which he was then

working on. There were pictorial comparisons with the earlier book,

and the new presentation looked superior in every way. Sadly, this
doesn't seem to have transferred to the published result.
 

Panel from TITAN edition

 

I managed to pick up a copy of the TITAN BOOKS softcover

edition in my local FORBIDDEN PLANET comics shop recently, and
I have to be honest and say that I found it to be disappointing in certain

respects. Some pages and panels are so murky, and colours so dark,

that the detail is practically invisible underneath. Perhaps the problem

is purely down to the printing, but what's the point of alleged 'faithful'

reproduction of the original line-work if you can't even see it?

Panel from MARVEL edition

 

I can't open the book wide enough to scan complete pages

without creasing the spine, but I can show you a panel from each
volume so that you can see the difference for yourselves. The first
picture, shown before the preceding paragraph, is an example from
the Titan book, followed by the same panel, above, from the Marvel
presentation of the tale. Which one would you say was clearer?
 

Front cover to MARVEL edition

 

Despite the imperfections of the 1989 release, it's a much easier

reading experience and less likely to induce eye-strain and headaches

in those who peruse its pages than the the 2011 Titan volume. So don't

be misled by its claims to superiority over the Marvel book - it would be

a tad hasty to dispense with the earlier edition until a truly superior

version is available to collectors.

 

 Sad to say, that's still to happen. Maybe one day? In the meantime,
I'd say that both volumes are essential items on any serious Simon &
Kirby fan's bookshelf.


Back cover to MARVEL edition

 

FOOTNOTE: I played around with the Titan panel on my computer

and this (below) was the result, so it seems that the murkiness is down

to the way the book was printed rather than the way the pages were

prepared for publication. Hopefully Titan will release a superior,

defect-free edition in the not too distant future.

 

Reworked TITAN panel