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Yes, 3 - 2 - 1, because I'm showing them in reverse order as, if I lead with the first one, having already shown it on the blog a while back, you Crivvies may skip tuning in, thinking it's a repost. I bought the first Annual a couple of years ago and acquired the next two only recently, so now's the time to show all three together at the same time.
Above is the third Annual for 1964 (on sale towards the end of '63), below is the second for '63 (on sale in '62), and below that is the one for '62 (yes, you guessed it - on sale in '61). As far as I recall, I never knew about these Annuals at the time, nor do I remember any of my pals ever having any of them, so it's good to return 60-odd years into the past and transplant them into my present (and future).
Some people regard the first of the trio as more of a storybook than an Annual, but it does contain picture strips, which outnumber the text stories by three to two. The picture stories (or comic strips if you prefer) have small text pieces beneath the panels, but they also contain speech balloons, making the book, in my opinion, a true Annual. It has only 48 pages including the covers, so I suspect it may've been a rush job as the show had only debuted on TV at the beginning of the year, but the next two books made up for that, being quite lavish productions (by the standards of the time).
Collins was responsible for all three books, and the last two are in the same style as the four Fireball XL5 books by the same publisher. I'd say it's pretty obvious that the rocket ship, Super-R, is heavily based on Fireball, and it makes me wonder if it could've been one of several possible early designs for XL5 (or Century 21 as it was originally going to be called) before being rejected. The Annual, as I said, went on sale around August or September '62, and Fireball didn't appear on TV until October of the same year. As Sylvia Anderson was one of the book's two writers, she'd have been privy to such things.
Brian Lewis was responsible for the cover and interior art in the first Annual, and Eric Eden illustrated the endpapers in the second. I'm not sure whether or not he also did its cover (any Crivs know?), but he definitely did the cover for the third one as it's got his name on it. If any of you had (or have) any (or all) of these books, feel free to leave a comment about them. In fact, even if you didn't (or don't) own them, you can still leave a comment anyway.
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They deserve a post of their own, Kidda and I remember only too well your post about the first book and obviously the accompanying pictures!
ReplyDeleteBut, no, sadly I don't have any of them (in a physical format anyway!)
I'll probably put up some of the internal comic strips before too long (I hope), JP, from the 2nd & 3rd books - the colour ones are very nice.
ReplyDeleteLook forward to those!
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Kid, if you're interested there's a documentary on Radio 4 at 8pm tomorrow called 'Marvel vs DC: Contest Of The Champions' which is about the rivalry between Marvel and DC since the '60s. It should be interesting!
ReplyDeleteI'd like to hear it, CJ, but unfortunately I'll be watching Father Brown on TV at that time. I just can't pass up the opporchancity of drooling over Bunty Windermere, alias the stunning Emer Kenny.
ReplyDeleteI'll try not to be too long about it, JP.
ReplyDeleteKid, this is 2023 not 1973 so you don't need to listen to the documentary at the time it's being broadcast, there are other options. I'll be listening on BBC Sounds on Sunday morning while eating my breakfast of Polish sausage, cheddar cheese and dates.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure my radio has BBC Sounds (or is that iPlayer?), CJ. I'll look it up on my computer.
ReplyDeleteKid, BBC Sounds is an app you can download to a phone, tablet or computer but you can also listen to BBC Sounds by searching for the schedule of whatever radio station you want (in this case Radio 4).
ReplyDeleteThanks for that, CJ, that's what I'll do.
ReplyDeleteSorry for being out of touch over the last few weeks but I have been back in hospital again with a heart attack and more heart surgery. On the mend once more .I had the 1963 Supercar annual decades ago until one of my school buddies stole it. No idea who the thief was and never saw it again.
ReplyDeleteKid, did you know that Rolf Harris died recently?
ReplyDeleteSad to hear about your heart attack, LH, good to hear you're on the mend. As for your Supercar Annual, at least you've seen the cover again on this blog.
ReplyDeleteI wonder where DS is these days - he doesn't comment any more. Hope he's all right.
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I think he's been dead to most people for a good while now, CJ, since it came to light what he'd been up to.
Echo that sentiment, Kidda. Just like Savile, I used to like Harris a lot. But that got switched off, as soon as I heard what they did. And to think my daughter wrote to him during his Rolf's Cartoon Club days. Luckily he was over in Oz and his wife replied for him. We shudder to think what could have happened if she had been invited on his programme.
DeleteWhen I heard it on the news I never even commented one way or the other.
The sad thing is, JP, do we let it spoil our childhoods or not? I still have one of his singles (Two Little Boys) which I've now had for decades. (It was a replacement for the one my brother had as a child.) I'm reluctant to dispose of it as it would seem like I'm jettisoning part of my childhood, so I try and separate the performer (or the performance to be more accurate) from the man. That way, I can continue to nostalgically appreciate an aspect of my youth, but still wholeheartedly disapprove of the person and his actions. It's a difficult balancing act, but I do my best. Must be much worse for Glitter and Savile fans.
ReplyDeleteI have done exactly the same thing, Kid. I too have 2LB plus a best of cassette and a CD, plus a GG LP and a one of his singles. Similarly, my daughter still has the "Rolf" comic she made and sent in for them to photostat! That selfsame comic survived a house fire and is singed around the edges, but it was meant to survive!
DeleteYeah, it's hard to give up things that link us to our past, JP - especially childhood or teenage years. Why should we let the wrongdoing of others taint our happy and innocent memories? To me, songs of disgraced performers have a life of their own, quite divorced from the singers.
ReplyDeleteHey Kid, my site (Buddy's Cartoons) changed domain! Here's the new one: https://petehaleblog.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteI don't have any problem separating the performer from the performance - I listen to Gary Glitter's 'Another Rock 'n' Roll Christmas' every year because it's a great festive tune. BBC 4 shows old episodes of Top Of The Pops but not episodes hosted by Jimmy Saville or Dave Lee Travis which is a bit silly in my opinion - the singers and bands who appeared on those particular episodes are being punished for something that's not their fault.
ReplyDeleteI'll add it to my blog list when I get a moment, PH.
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I think they occasionally still show clips originally introduced by those presenters, CJ, but with the presenters edited out. Of course, that means parts of the beginning and endings of some songs are 'clipped', as some DJs talked over them.
Now done, PH. To see it, you'll first have to click 'See All' at the bottom of my blog-list.
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