Saturday, March 30, 2019

A Word from Our Sponsor: JET ROCKET SPACE SHIP!


This intriguing ad ran in comic books in the '50s and 60s. The ship was first offered at $2.98, then had a two dollar price increase. It included, you'll see "2 Disintigrator Guns" and after blasting off you can "release your load of powerful nuclear bombs and bullseye!" What fun!

But what did this baby really look like? I've collected photos from around the 'net to show us what was in the box and what it really looked like.



This piece from the June 1956 Mechanix Illustrated shows the disintigrator guns, but where are the nuclear bombs? (Note the kid in the Davy Crockett cap.)





Thursday, March 28, 2019

Opening Day Special: WILL EISNER Plays Ball with "Rube Rooky" (1949)


In a perfect world, I'd be celebrating Opening Day at Target Field in Minneapolis, scarfing down hot dogs and watching the Twins beat the Cleveland Indians. But since I'm fourteen hundred miles away, and can't even get the game on TV without coughing up a hundred or more bucks, I'll settle for reading this story from Will Eisner's Baseball Comics #1. 

Back in 1949, Eisner decided to publish a couple of comics under his own imprint. Only two appeared, this one and an infantile thing called Kewpies. If Kewpies contained any work by Eisner himself, it's not readily apparent, and the mag is best forgotten. Baseball Comics, though, is very nicely done, and, aside from a few pages of filler material, is Eisner through and through. He even drew the ads, which you see after the story.

As one those ads tells us, a second issue was planned, but lousy distribition sounded the line's death knell. Baseball Comics #2 had already been completed, though, and was finally published by Kitchen Sink in 1992.

This ish comes to us courtesy of ComicBookPlus.com and the scanner known as "Yoc."



























Wednesday, March 27, 2019

BASIL WOLVERTON's Culture Corner: "How to Eat Soup without Slurping" & Other Important Stuff (1945-46)





These educational marvels appreared in Whiz Comics, alongside Captain Marvel and Spy Smasher, back in 1945 and '46. Stay tuned for more on Davy Crockett's Almanack, the blog where you learn stuff.

Tuesday, March 26, 2019

FRAZETTA Goes Coo-Coo Again (1948-49)


Here's another batch of Frank's text story headers from Coo-Coo Comics, as found on comicbookplus. These are from 1948 and '49. 












See other Frazetta story headers HERE