Friday 10 January 2020

THE LION ROARS AND THE EAGLE SOARS ONCE MORE...

Copyright REBELLION

Well - sort of.  Above is what was a rather beat up copy of the first combined issue of LION & EAGLE from 1969 that I got via eBay back in November.  The seller hadn't noticed 4 missing pages when he listed it, and I didn't notice right away when I received it as they'd been carefully removed and their absence wasn't immediately obvious.  The seller gave me a full refund and let me keep the issue once I pointed out the fault, and Crivens reader Hucky supplied a Mediafile link to scans of the complete issue so I could restore the comic to its full complement of stories.

However, although I now had access to the missing pages, I still didn't have them in published form so had to estimate their image size from the ones that remained, which aren't all the same ratio so there's no guarantee that the replacements exactly match the originals.  (They'll be pretty close though.)  Also, printing on both sides of the same sheet of paper so that the images are 100% back-to-back is difficult to do with any precision, so I had to settle for the art being more towards the middle on the 'facsimile' pages, instead of slightly closer to the spine like the others. 

I used FILMOPLAST P90 PLUS (supplied by reader Hackney Steve) to reinforce the cover's spine, and to attach the replacement pages to their other halves, and although not perfect, it's a fairly neat, now-complete readable copy of this comic from the '60s.  Incidentally, the tape is less apparent then it looks in the photos - the camera's flash makes it seem more obvious in places than it actually is.  Eventually, I'll track down a better condition copy, but mending this one was a satisfying exercise which saved it from being thrown into the bin.

So I've rescued the comic from oblivion and consequently feel very proud of myself.  Don't be shy about telling me how gifted I am in the comments section.  All lies to that effect will be gratefully received and readily believed.

Update: I've since replaced this ish with a better copy and given the repaired one to a pal.  



9 comments:

Terranova47 said...

Nicely restored damage caused by a fan of Paddy Payne.

Personally I preferred Battler Britton back in the 50's. Wing Commander Robert Hereward Britto, RAF. It was all in the name.

Kid said...

That's what I thought, T47, when I learned that it was Paddy Payne who was missing. Just think - there are probably subsequent issues out there somewhere that belonged to the same person, all with the PP strips removed.

Hackney Steve said...

Glad the tape came in handy, Kid...also pleased to hear that the seller did the right thing. Even buying stuff in person doesn't avoid this problem - I've bought British comics at marts and found pages missing later, and even individual frames cut out in one case...

Kid said...

Tape was very handy indeed, HS, and I can see me using it on other comics that need repaired. I used a huge amount of paper and ink while trying to get decent copies of the images near the right size, but I got there in the end. However, now I wish I'd got the inside of the images closer to the spine (which would mean cutting wider paper while keeping the image size the same), so I'm considering doing them again. I'll have to try using the tape on an old comic beyond repair first though, to see if I can remove the tape without ripping the comic paper. Otherwise, I'll just have to leave the Lion & Eagle ish as it is.

hucky said...

Can you help?.I need the two pages from Lion 30th April 1960 of Rory MacDuff
and 11th June 1960 of Rory Macduff.
I'm trying to convert all the German Kobras to the british Vulcan as they carried on when ours stopped!

Kid said...

Wish I could, H, after you helping me out with the pages I was looking for, but unfortunately I don't have that particular issue. There's a comic site somewhere which reproduces old comics, so they might have it, but I can't recall the name of it. When I do, I'll let you know.

Kid said...

Hucky, there are a few Lion DVD sets containing loads of issues on ebay at the moment, and the is yohu're looking for is bound to be on them. Might be your best bet. Just jump over to ebay and type 'Lion comic DVD' into the 'search for anything' box.

Unknown said...

Hi,
I have a complete copy of the Lion & Eagle issue 1 if you would like to buy it?
Paul

Kid said...

Certainly interested. What condition and how much? Is that Paul McScotty?



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