BABE Of The DAY - RACHEL RILEY...

Brains and beauty are always a winning

combination (though not necessarily in that

order), and who epitomizes those two qualities

better than the ravishing RACHEL RILEY?

(Apart from my good self of course.)

PART FOUR OF 'NEW' SUPERMAN COVER GALLERY...

Images copyright DC COMICS

When these comics first came out nearly 28 years ago,

for some reason #20 wasn't put aside for me (I had a standing

order for them).  I only acquired it a few short years ago, from

the late Neil Craig's FUTURESHOCK in Woodlands Road in

Glasgow.  I only remember that because of the back issue 'lot-

tery' ticket I found within its pages when I flicked through

it relatively recently.

The ticket must have been there for years as it comes

from a time when the shop had relocated for a while to Byers

Road in the '90s, so it had long-expired by the the time I bought

the comic from the shop's original premises a couple or so years

before Neil Craig passed away.  It always gives me a sense of

achievement when I manage to fill a gap in a collection -

still got a few more to go.

Anyway, well done.  You've endured my self-indulgent

wittering for long enough, so enjoy your reward of these six

covers from a period when a SUPERMAN comic was still

a super read.  (It's been a while in my view.)

******

Incidentally, doesn't it look like there's something missing

from the 'Power Failure' blurb in the above cover (#19)?

KID KLASSICS: The ADS THAT MADE AN @SS OUT OF ATLAS...

A genuine Ad.  Copyright relevant owner

CHARLES ATLAS (real name Angelo Siciliano, born 1892) seems to have been around forever.  Practically everyone remembers the ads from many comicbooks throughout the '60s and '70s, though they actually debuted back in the '40s.  He died in 1972, aged 80, so he was an old man for much of the period that people of my age group first became familiar with his athletic frame and visage staring out from the comics of our youth.

The ads are so iconic that they have become a target for affectionate lampooning in the pages of the selfsame publications that the originals were printed in.  Here, for your amusement, are just a few of the many parodies which have appeared - enjoy. (And tell us your favourite in the comments section.)

A lampoon (as if you couldn't tell).  Copyright MARVEL COMICS

Click on image to enlarge, then click again for optimum size.

The BUMPER BOOK For BOYS...

I was in a charity shop yesterday and bought an old book for £1.50.  It's from the '30s, I think - maybe even the '20s.  Hard to say for sure as there's no date anywhere inside.  The four colour plates evoke a long-vanished age, so I thought it worth sharing them with you here.  Couldn't say whether it ever had a dustjacket - perhaps you know?  If so, do tell.

I'VE GOT ONE, YOU'VE GOT ONE, EVERYBODY'S GOT ONE...

Radio Victory

Back in early 1985, I was busily pursuing my freelance comics career from a bedsit room in Shearer Rd. in Fratton, Portsmouth.  I usually had the radio on as I worked, and, one night, I was listening to a show by a DJ called GEORGE REID (I think)* on the local station, RADIO VICTORY.  (Whose premises were situated just along the road from me actually.)

(*Might have been Reed.)

George announced his regular 'phone quiz and offered up the following question for the consideration of his eager and loyal listeners.  "I've got one, you've got one, everybody's got one - what is it?"  Then he played some records as he waited for folk to ring in with their various suggestions.  Eventually someone did, and the bold host repeated his question and then asked for the fellow's answer.  "Is it 'penis'?" came the response.

The caller was immediately cut off and a record was played while the stunned George composed himself.  When he returned after the song's end, he bemoaned what had happened, saying that in all the many years that he'd worked on radio (in America too, he was keen to point out), he'd never once had such a rude response to one of his questions as the one he'd just had the misfortune to hear (and inadvertently broadcast).

George then took another call, and a voice (which, to me, sounded suspiciously similar to the previous one) said "I'd just like to say how shocked I was to hear that last caller say 'penis' on the radio..."  You could almost hear George's internal indecision over just how he should respond.  The offending word had been repeated, but it was in the form of a complaint, so the repetition was perhaps legitimate - or was it? George hesitated and was lost, as the caller continued "...personally, I thought the answer was 'pr*ck'!"

  

George spluttered his indignation as I (and no doubt his entire audience) had a good laugh.  Truth to tell, George sounded just a bit too far up himself, and the courts of the universe demanded that he be brought down a peg.  He was, and in hilarious fashion too.  His pomposity had been punctured, justice was served, and all was right with the world.

And what was the real answer to the question?  I'll have to disappoint you all there, because I can no longer remember.  I doubt it was as entertaining as the first one though.  What do you suppose it might have been?

Update: I was astonished to discover some time after publishing this post that Radio Victory ceased broadcasting just over a year after my stay in Pompey, on June 28th 1986.  It had first started on October 14th 1975, and was one of the first 19 independent stations to be launched in the U.K. between 1973 and '76.  It popped up again over the years in various forms and from different buildings, but I last heard it in 1985, 30-odd years ago.    

KLASSIC KOMIC KOVERS - WARLORD #1...

Image copyright D.C. THOMSON & Co., Ltd

Was never really into war comics, but I was into #1s, so when DCT released the first ish of WARLORD, I bought it - and several of the subsequent issues.  Looking at the date, I see that I was yet a schoolboy, with another 3 months to go before I joined the working world, but it seems like it was only a few short years ago, such is the paradox of time.

(BOND) BABE Of The DAY - JILL ST. JOHN...

I don't usually like  redheads, but I

make an exception for JILL St. JOHN

as she's an total stunner!  I also make an

exception for ATLANTA SHORE - even

if my chances with either of 'em is about

 the same - not a ruddy snowball's! 

BEANO SUMMER SPECIAL FRONT COVER GALLERY...

Images copyright D.C. THOMSON & Co., Ltd

Okay, the one above is actually a DANDY/BEANO Summer Special, but it counts as the first one for both comics so I just had to include it here.  From 1963 to '73, here are the front covers of all the Beano Specials to prod a few memories.  Which ones did you have, Crivs?  Share your reminiscences in the comments section.

Oh, go on then.  As a special treat, below is the full cover for the very first one.  Don't ever say that I'm not good to you all!

KLASSIC KOMIC KOVERS - FANTASTIC #89...

Image copyright MARVEL COMICS

You're looking at the end of an era - the very last issue of FANTASTIC, published in October 1968.  A week later, the name appeared in tiny form as part of the masthead of SMASH!, which 'incorporated' its former sister publication from that point on.  Around five months later, Smash! was revamped and the remaining Marvel content vanished - along with the name Fantastic from the cover.  Short-lived it may have been, but the comic had certainly lived up to its name.

(Incidentally, that's not the real MANDARIN on the cover - it's JIMMY HILL done up to look like him.)

BABE Of The DAY - LYNDSAY WAGNER...

Went for a meal with LYNDSAY

WAGNER last night.  When I said I'd get

the bill, I never realized it'd cost 6 million

dollars.  Those bionic gals are expensive.

 (Don't worry, Crivs, I can afford it.)

RECOMMENDED READING: STAR TREK - The CLASSIC UK COMICS VOLUME ONE...

Copyright relevant owner

Here's a book that all fans of STAR TREK are sure to love. IDW's handsome volume reprints the first British comic strips based on GENE RODDENBERRY's iconic TV series from the 1960s.  Featuring artwork by HARRY F. LINDFIELD, JIM BAIKIE, RON TURNER and MIKE NOBLE, this is the first in a series that will reprint all the U.K. produced Star Trek comic strips from JOE 90, TV21, and TV COMIC.  I saw this book in a local comicbook store recently, so if you'd like to buy a copy, your nearest outlet is the destination for you.

'NEW' SUPERMAN COVER GALLERY - PART THREE...

Images copyright DC COMICS

Another six covers from nearly 30 years ago for you to peruse for pleasure at your leisure (hey, poetry), from a time when SUPERMAN was a comic still worth reading.  I just can't get into the character anymore, unless it's in the form of back issues or reprints.  Is CLARK KENT still married to LOIS LANE nowadays, or has that been done away with?  (I hope so - it was a major mistake in my opinion.)

Anyway, enjoy these half-dozen images, and there'll be another lot along for you to savour before you even know it.

BABE Of The DAY - BETTIE PAGE...

One word sums up today's Babe BETTIE

PAGE, fellas - and that word is COR!!!

THE COMING OF THE SUPERMEN...

Images copyright DC COMICS

I picked up these three mags over a week ago, but only got around to reading them a couple of days back.  Fans of NEAL ADAMS will find them interesting, but I felt that the art looked a bit rough in places, and the script was a little disjointed on occasion.  The first issue's lettering had uneven balloon shapes, but each ish has a different letterer, so #s 2 & 3 were fine.

In #1, LOIS LANE's expression is too 'smiley' for the news she's delivering, which seems a bit strange, and SUPERMAN's face seems too 'brutish' in some panels for my tastes.  However, it's an intriguing plot and I'll probably read the next three issues to find out how it all wraps up.

Entertaining enough to warrant you spending your dosh on them, but perhaps not as dynamic as you'd expect from one of the comicbook greats.

Available now at your local comicbook store.