THE GHOST-WHO-WALKS (OR: YOU'RE TOO OLD FOR PHARAOH TALES)...

The PHANTOM copyright KING FEATURES SYNDICATE, Inc 

Comics creators who contributed to CHARLTON COMICS were allowed a freedom that wasn't accorded by other comicbook companies.  Charlton were reputed to pay the lowest page rates in the business, but writers felt compensated by the lack of editorial 'interference' that was par for the course at MARVEL and DC (and doubtless other comics publishing companies as well).

So, good for the writers and maybe even the artists, but that didn't always necessarily translate into a superior product for the readers.  Case in point: The PHANTOM #32, published in 1969.  The plot involves a fake Pharaoh Phantom who seeks to usurp the position of the true 'Ghost-Who-Walks'.  Strangely though, the other Phantom is in Egypt, not Bengali, where the genuine Phantom has his jungle kingdom.

It's an entertaining enough little tale.  A royal sarcophagus is discovered during an excavation in Egypt's Valley Of Kings.  The lid is pried open and a mummified figure is exposed, who soon magically unravels and is revealed as The Pharaoh Phantom, who declares the real Phantom to be an imposter.  By use of seemingly supernatural means, the fake performs impressive displays of power that puts the genuine article deep in the shade.

As you can see in the accompanying pages, he's eventually exposed as the fraud he is, but - wait a minute - no explanation is ever given as to how he managed to plant himself in that sealed sarcophagus in a closed burial chamber to begin with.  His magical images from the past are shown to be the result of a projector on a screen, but just how did he manage to create these filmed images?  A huge budget would surely be required, and if they were merely extracted from a movie, it would be obvious.  I'm sure that most readers would've liked to know how he accomplished it, and have found the story more rewarding as a result.

STAN LEE, I'm sure, wouldn't have let this story pass without these aspects being explained, but whoever edited this issue obviously thought such things unimportant.  I disagree.  Creative freedom is all very well, but it's no excuse for laziness.  The readers deserve better, and had Charlton insisted that their writers put in a little more effort (and paid them better), the company might yet be around today.  Verdict?  Charlton produced lightweight, entertaining comics, but they could have done far better.

Got a view on the matter?  The comments section awaits.

PART TWO Of CADET'S STINGRAY SWEET CIGARETTE CARDS...

Copyright relevant owner

Y'know, it's an odd thing, but I associate the 21st century more with the mid-'60s than I do with the present day.  That's doubtless because I, like many kids of the time, was exposed to the 21st century through the TV puppet programmes of GERRY ANDERSON, the pages of TV CENTURY 21, and various other items of SUPERMARIONATION merchandise.

I don't especially remember having the sweet cigarette cards by CADET - certainly not the full set of them, though I may've had a few, but one look at them takes me right back to 1964 and forward to 2064 at the same time.  That's because the images are so strongly associated in my mind with those times, that even though I may not have had the cards, it seems that I did.

However, that's neither here nor there - you Crivs are here to see the cards, not read nostalgic nonsense about my childhood.  So feel free - paste your peepers to the pulsating pictures laid before you.  The comments section awaits your input.

BABE Of The DAY - MICHELLE KEEGAN...

Here's MICHELLE KEEGAN,

again frolicking on the seashore after

I returned the titanic temptress to just

 where I found 'er a few posts back.

 (Welcome to the world of my imagination.)

SECRET ORIGINS COVER & IMAGE GALLERY - PART THREE...

Images copyright DC COMICS

Nope, hadn't forgotten, even if it has been around three months since the first two parts in this series of SECRET ORIGINS cover galleries.  So let's not waste another second of boring intro from me, let's get straight into the pretty piccies.  (Before we do though, what about that DOLL MAN?  Somebody surely must have been high when they came up with that stinker of a name.  I can't see criminals trembling at the sound of it.  Laughing, yes - trembling, no.)

  

(BOND) BABE Of The DAY - JULIE EGE...

Summertime is over and there's a bit

of a nip in the air.  As you can just about

 see from looking at JULIE EGE.

CADET'S STINGRAY SWEET CIGARETTE CARDS - PART ONE...

Copyright relevant owner

You'll never guess what, Crivs.  Today, someone gave me - yes, gave me - a full set of CADET Sweet Cigarette STINGRAY and THUNDERBIRDS cards - for absolutely nothing!  That's right - free - gratis - for nowt!  Can you believe it?  Well, one good turn deserves another, and you, dear readers, are the lucky recipients as I'm going to share them with you right here on this humble blog of mine.

I'm just going to scan them in their protective sleeves to save me some hassle, so they might be a bit squint from time to time in their individual compartments, but I'm sure you'll all be able to live with that.  Another four parts to complete the Stingray collection, and then we'll follow that almost immediately with the Thunderbirds one.  Are you all agreeable to that?  Thought you might be.  Right, let's go.  "Anything can happen in the next half hour!"

KID KLASSICS: CAPTAIN ACTION-MAN (WITH COMICS COVER GALLERY)...

Playing Mantis Captain Action, with professionally
produced, shrink-wrapped replica of original box

Apparently, CAPTAIN ACTION creator STAN WESTON was one of a trio responsible for G.I. JOE - which is interesting (to me) because, in Great Britain, G.I. Joe was rechristened ACTION MAN.  As a lad in the '60s, I don't recall seeing Captain Action (or Captain Magic, as he was originally going to be named) on sale in this country, but I knew about the character through the adverts in comics issued by NATIONAL PERIODICAL PUBLICATIONS Inc. (DC COMICS), such as SUPERMAN and BATMAN, etc.  I instantly coveted this wondrous item, but it wasn't until toy company PLAYING MANTIS re-released IDEAL's iconic action-figure in 1998 that I finally managed to acquire one.

DC Comics published a title based on the character in the latter half of the 1960s, but its brief five issue run indicates that it wasn't quite as popular as anticipated.  Featuring artwork by WALLY WOOD and GIL KANE, and written first by JIM SHOOTER and then by Kane himself, the comics boasted some spectacular cover art, which I now unselfishly share with you here.  They're scanned from my very own copies which I obtained many years ago, but should still be relatively easy to obtain from back issue specialists in comicbook stores and on eBay.

The ad below (drawn by KURT SCHAFFENBERGER) comes from DETECTIVE COMICS #359 ("The Million Dollar Debut of Batgirl!"), but the previous owner has defaced The PHANTOM figure by drawing stripes on his costume.  Tsk!  Some people, eh?

I'd be interested in the reminiscences of American readers who had this toy when they were kids, and whether any Brits actually managed to get their hands on one back in the '60s.

      

And, if you're lucky, you may still be able to get this great book (below) all about Captain Action from your local comicbook store. This is the first printing, but I believe a revised and updated edition was made available a year or two back.

BABE Of The DAY - LINDA THORSON...

"Linda, Linda, wish you were mine"

run the words of a song.  Very apt, as any

man would wish LINDA THORSON was

his.  That makes Linda a popular woman!

She certainly is with me anyway.

NEW OLD COMICS BLOG...

Regular commenter JOHN PITT now has his own

blog about comics, called MY OLD COMICS!, which

can be found by simply clicking this link.  So why not

drop in and leave a comment of support?

JUST OUT OF REACH - JIM REEVES...

Yeah, I know - I've played this one before, but it's ultra-relaxing.  This

song is within your reach - it's only a click away.  Press that key now.

BABE Of The DAY - MICHELLE KEEGAN...

"Come on in, the water's lovely!" trills

stunning MICHELLE KEEGAN.  I'm staying

where I am though - 'cos from here, the view is

even lovelier.  What a gal and no mistake!

RECOMMENDED READING: The MIGHTY WORLD Of MARVEL #1 (VOLUME SIX)...

Image copyright MARVEL COMICS

On October 20th, a new volume of The MIGHTY WORLD

Of MARVEL goes on sale.  This mag first appeared back in 1972

and, a couple of spells in limbo aside, is still around today.  Jump

aboard for a new number one next month, Marvel fans!

RECOMMENDED READING: The BLACK PANTHER EPIC COLLECTION VOLUME ONE...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

Here's one that's available from all good comicbook shops on Wednesday, frantic fans - The BLACK PANTHER EPIC COLLECTION Volume One.  Beginning with T'CHALLA's earliest appearances in The FANTASTIC FOUR mag, and continuing with his own strip from JUNGLE ACTION, if you're a BP fan, you're sure to love this magnificent tome.

Read the spiel, and save your shekels until Wednesday.  Then get right 'round to your nearest store and buy one.

SO... YOU'VE GOT SEVEN DAYS TO LIVE - HOW WOULD YOU FEEL?

This is a tale about a man in prison waiting to face the electric chair, narrated by JIM REEVES (following a sung intro-verse), and I'm sure you're all going to love it.  Take it away, Jim...

(BOND) BABE Of The DAY - The VOLUPTUOUS VALERIE LEON...

You want words?  It's VALERIE

LEON for feck's sake, who needs words?

Okay then, I'll give you words - Hubba-

 Hubba!  Drool!  Slobber!  Happy?

LEGENDS Of The SUPERHEROES - BLECCCHHHHH!!!

Characters copyright DC COMICS

It may come as a surprise to some of you, but ADAM WEST and BURT WARD reprised their BATMAN and ROBIN roles more than once over the years, and not just for cartoons either.  In 1979, they appeared alongside other DC heroes and villains in a couple of TV Specials called - wait for it - LEGENDS Of The SUPERHEROES.

The other heroes were CAPTAIN MARVEL, The FLASH, The HUNTRESS, BLACK CANARY, GREEN LANTERN, and HAWKMAN, while the super villains were MORDRU, SOLOMON GRUNDY, The RIDDLER (yup, Mr. FRANK GORSHIN), The WEATHER WIZARD, Dr. SIVANA, SINESTRO, and GIGANTA.

The ATOM and AUNT MINERVA turned up in the second Special, but I have to be honest and say both episodes are excruciatingly awful, and you should all count yourselves lucky if you've never seen them.  Shot on videotape, with a laugh-track (yup, they're meant to be funny - but aren't) these two low-budget shows are the way not to do superheroes.  And here's why:

You never see The Flash run, Hawkman fly (or even flap his wings) and Green Lantern merely points his power ring at himself and disappears.  Captain Marvel does a spot of flying, but it's a poorly executed piece of back (or maybe front - what do I know?) projection for a few seconds.  You have to hand it to Adam West for throwing himself into things, but he really should have tucked the neck of his mask inside his cape, like in the '60s TV show.

Take it from me, you can safely give these two shows a miss - unless you're a diehard fan of 'car-crash' TV.  They're both genuinely execrable, though the second one, The ROAST, is even worse than the first, The CHALLENGE.  I suppose if there's anyone you really hate, you could give them this as a present, secure in the knowledge that they'll lose the will to live while watching it.

But no - that would surely be too cruel!  (Remember the rumours of torture at GUANTANAMO BAY?  They were true - they showed this DVD to the detainees.)

"WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN TO ALL YOUR STUFF WHEN YOU DIE, DADDY?"

I sometimes find myself worrying about what will happen to my massive collection of toys, comics and books when I fall off the twig in around 100 years or so (I'm not planning on going early or easily).  Will I ever get around to establishing a museum of childhood, or will all my stuff end up in charity shops or dustbins?  It's a bit like being a parent and having to think about making provisions for your children when you're not here.

Are you a proud collector?  What would you like to have happen to your beloved treasures when you eventually have to cast off this mortal coil?  None of the "I'll be dead so I don't care" cop-outs; what would be the ideal fate of all your material companions through life that would allow you to bow out with the assurance that they'd be cared for and cherished after you've gone exploring in that 'final frontier' ?

And what's the absolute gem of your collection, the one item that, if everything else was jettisoned by your heirs, you'd breathe a little easier in the hereafter (if there is one - and if you can breathe) so long as it survived and was looked after and appreciated by its new owner?  Too difficult a question?  Okay, you can pick three items.  So what are they?  Reveal all in the captivating comments section, Criv-ite chums.