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Post by Slam_Bradley on Dec 20, 2014 15:54:02 GMT -5
#5. Four-Color #932 (Smokey the Bear)Here was the original 32-page Dell comic from which my fan club giveaway had been reprinted, a comic I didn't even know existed, and at a price well within my budget. I didn't hesitate. The flood of memories reading the Four-Color evoked was worth every penny, but it was the rest of its contents that blew my mind. There were two other stories besides the origin, both featuring Smokey's mini-me, his son Smokey Jr. My beloved childhood friend was an honest-to-Eisner comic book character, and not just in the homemade comics I'd starred him in! My Smokey, now in his mid-50s, sits today in a place of honor in my office/library, watching benevolently over my endeavors as a professional comics historian, and the comic bides its time in a short box in the closet (a.k.a. The Vault). Both will remain with me til the day I die. Cei-U! I summon my want list, headed by the other seven issues of Four-Color starring Smokey! I knew this was coming. Let me just say that I actually know Smokey. Well...kind of. My sister-in-law is a press liaison for the Department of the Interior. When they moved to D. C. my brother, who had been retired, took a job answering kids letters to Smokey. My big brother gets to ghost-write for Smokey the Bear. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 20, 2014 15:55:53 GMT -5
#5. Four-Color #932 (Smokey the Bear)Here was the original 32-page Dell comic from which my fan club giveaway had been reprinted, a comic I didn't even know existed, and at a price well within my budget. I didn't hesitate. The flood of memories reading the Four-Color evoked was worth every penny, but it was the rest of its contents that blew my mind. There were two other stories besides the origin, both featuring Smokey's mini-me, his son Smokey Jr. My beloved childhood friend was an honest-to-Eisner comic book character, and not just in the homemade comics I'd starred him in! My Smokey, now in his mid-50s, sits today in a place of honor in my office/library, watching benevolently over my endeavors as a professional comics historian, and the comic bides its time in a short box in the closet (a.k.a. The Vault). Both will remain with me til the day I die. Cei-U! I summon my want list, headed by the other seven issues of Four-Color starring Smokey! I knew this was coming. Let me just say that I actually know Smokey. Well...kind of. My sister-in-law is a press liaison for the Department of the Interior. When they moved to D. C. my brother, who had been retired, took a job answering kids letters to Smokey. My big brother gets to ghost-write for Smokey the Bear. That's one of the coolest things I've ever heard. Are there a lot of letters to Smokey? |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Dec 20, 2014 15:59:08 GMT -5
I knew this was coming. Let me just say that I actually know Smokey. Well...kind of. My sister-in-law is a press liaison for the Department of the Interior. When they moved to D. C. my brother, who had been retired, took a job answering kids letters to Smokey. My big brother gets to ghost-write for Smokey the Bear. That's one of the coolest things I've ever heard. Are there a lot of letters to Smokey? You know, I've never asked him. I know he still does a ton of camping and travel. It's definitely a part-time gig. I'll have to ask him next time we talk on the phone. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 20, 2014 16:02:09 GMT -5
If you do remember to ask I look forward to finding out. I know Smokey was a fairly big deal when I was a kid (which was the late 80's/early 90's) and I've often wondered if kids today are still aware of him.
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Dec 20, 2014 16:11:09 GMT -5
If you do remember to ask I look forward to finding out. I know Smokey was a fairly big deal when I was a kid (which was the late 80's/early 90's) and I've often wondered if kids today are still aware of him. At the risk of taking over the thread... I see Smokey on TV commercials a fair amount. The Forest Service still gives out the free Smokey comic at their fair booths and he appears in most of the local parades. But we have a HUGE amount of Forest Service land in Idaho. Woodsy Owl, on the other hand, seems to have disappeared. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 20, 2014 16:21:02 GMT -5
If you do remember to ask I look forward to finding out. I know Smokey was a fairly big deal when I was a kid (which was the late 80's/early 90's) and I've often wondered if kids today are still aware of him. At the risk of taking over the thread... I see Smokey on TV commercials a fair amount. The Forest Service still gives out the free Smokey comic at their fair booths and he appears in most of the local parades. But we have a HUGE amount of Forest Service land in Idaho. Woodsy Owl, on the other hand, seems to have disappeared. Yeah, I suppose there still is a sizable media presence for Smokey and I've seen a sign with him on it in just about every state park I've been to in New England but I used to see him at different events growing up and I haven't recently. Like you mentioned though, it may be regional depending on the size of the Forestry Service and their budgets from state to state. And now that you mention it, I don't think I've seen or heard about Woodsy since the mid-90's. |
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Post by Calamas on Dec 20, 2014 16:51:22 GMT -5
#5: Green Lantern #191 Much like shaxper's pick for today, mine is centered around my favorite comic book character of all time, Hal Jordan aka the Green Lantern. Sure there were other characters who I liked before Gl, like Spider-man and the X-Men when I first got into comics, but none of them really sucked me into the comics world like Hal Jordan did. Unlike Superman who was born with powers or Batman who was rich enough to buy everything he needed, Hal stumbled upon his powers through being worthy to wield them. I loved the cosmic mythos of the Green Lantern concept, the massive world building that writers had developed over the years. The reason Hal Jordan worked so well in those stories was that he was one of us, a human who had found himself suddenly working with aliens from worlds beyond. Not only that, but he was one of the best Green Lanterns of all! However, the reason that this story stands out to me is that Hal isn't even a Green Lantern in it. This was during one of the periods Hal had given up his ring and John Stewart was the main Green Lantern of Earth. However, Carol Ferris is kidnapped by the Predator and Hal must go rescue her. Steve Englehart really gets into Hal's head and gives us insight into who he is and his love for Carol. While many writers had previously toyed around with the Hal and Carol relationship, Englehart took into bold new directions, sometimes for the better and other times for the worse. However, even at its worst, he still did it in a fascinating way and this issue is a testament to his skill in character study. I’ll be discussing this comic tomorrow. |
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Post by hondobrode on Dec 20, 2014 17:00:15 GMT -5
I too had a Smokey the Bear stuffed figure and I loved it. He was my Teddy Bear I slept with.
If I'd been bad, my dad would threaten to spank the Bear instead of me. I'd beg him to spank me instead ! Not the bear !
Anyway, 5 year old Hondo was in the basement coming out of the shower, and I'd put my wet towel on the radiator to dry. Distracted, I'd forgotten about the towel and it burst into flames. Teddy was close by.
He got partly burned. The fire department showed up and put out what had started but not gotten too big.
Smokey was saved but not quite the same again. Still, I hung on to him for a few more years until he finally wore out.
I'm thinking I'll get some Smokey comics if I see em.
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Post by Calamas on Dec 20, 2014 17:03:16 GMT -5
 Daredevil #181 Apr 1982 “Last Hand” Frank Miller Klaus Janson If in 1986 Alan Moore changed the way comics were created, the innovation previous to that came in 1982 with Frank Miller and Daredevil, but only in a way a writer/artist could innovate. (And it could be argued a year later that Howard Chaykin seriously tweaked the form again with American Flagg.) We saw flashes of what was to come as Miller penciled a handful Roger McKenzie scripts . . .  . . . but it was only when he was free to tell darker tales that the storytelling changed. And not just in the art. While villains had been killed before, once one became a part of the supporting cast--and a love interest, as well--it was unheard of. The battle that followed, which ended in the death of Electra, caught me completely by surprise. I can honestly say it had been years since I reread a comic multiple times in the same sitting. And the first time in adulthood.  |
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Post by hondobrode on Dec 20, 2014 17:12:25 GMT -5
This comic was a find while I was in college. Everyone in my class knew I loved comics. One weekend my girlfriend and I were home from college and I saw the mailman coming down the road. It was an old classmate of mine Rodney, who farmed and did this on Saturdays as a side job. He asked if I was still collecting. Yeah, of course. Well, he'd come across some comics and did auctioneering too after his mail route on Saturdays. Would I like to come in and look at em ? Were they old ? Yeah, 10, 15, 20 cent covers. Ok, I'll look. The comics were stacked in miscellaneous brown boxes and beer flats. Lots of 50s and 60s stuff though hardly anything I really wanted until I came across this one.  I showed my girlfriend the issue trying not to look too elated. A key issue, and I love the Legion ! Wow ! The one other issue I found was a My Little Margie with the Beatles. Of course that was worth some money. Both of those got put in a certain box and I was going to not let it get away from me. Well, the auctioneers mixed up all the boxes ! It was blind bidding time. I'd just cashing my paycheck as a part-time night dispatcher the day before. I bid on, and won, every box but the solitary last flat as I could see it was nothing but Tarzans, and I knew the 2 issues I wanted were somewhere in all the other boxes I bought. That was 1986 or 1987, and I spent my whole $ 237 check on those boxes, but I got around 300 issues, which I kept but later sold as a lot I think for around $ 2/issue. My Little Margie I traded, and though I kept Adventure for a long time, when I was on worker's comp, I called Metropolis Comics and sold it. Painful as it was, I was proud I'd done right by my family and it helped us out when we needed it. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 20, 2014 17:45:00 GMT -5
I love that Legion story!
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Post by foxley on Dec 20, 2014 18:05:04 GMT -5
#5. Batman #291
Synopsis: When word spreads throughout the underworld that Batman has been killed, several villains take credit for the deed. So the villain community sets up a trial to test the various claims, with Ra's al Ghul acting as judge and Two-Face acting as prosecutor. First up is the Catwoman. Why I chose it: I first read this comic in an Australian reprint, but I am nominating the American original as that is the version I currently have in my collection. Acquiring it was like rediscovering part of my childhood. As for why I am nominating it, this is the first comic cover that truly fascinated me. Once I saw that moody, evocative cover I knew that I had to have the comic in order to find out what the story attached to it was. Fortunately I was able to persuade my mother to buy it for me. And the story did not disappoint, with Catwoman telling the story of how she 'murdered' Batman, and Two-Face shooting her down by pointing out the impossibility in her tale. It was just like an Encyclopedia Brown story (which I was heavily into at the time), but with superheroes! And in this story, I learnt that Brazilian pepper wood doesn't float. (Who says comics aren't educational?) This comic may also be a big part of the reason I'm a huge Catwoman fan (although I think she should never had abandoned the slit-skirted costume she wears in this issue). And this storyline is why I cut David V. Reed more slack than he really deserves as a writer. I'll never forgot my first purchase based solely on a cover. Thank goodness I wasn't disappointed.
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Post by Action Ace on Dec 20, 2014 18:47:34 GMT -5
No story today. This comic speaks for itself: 5. Astro City #1/2 Without any hyperbole, I honestly believe that every fan of superhero comics needs to own a copy of this. Literally my last cut. I sent money to Wizard Magazine to get this comic! It may be the best single comic book of all time, but I went with another issue as a favorite. |
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Post by foxley on Dec 20, 2014 19:00:49 GMT -5
No story today. This comic speaks for itself: 5. Astro City #1/2Without any hyperbole, I honestly believe that every fan of superhero comics needs to own a copy of this. Literally my last cut. I sent money to Wizard Magazine to get this comic! It may be the best single comic book of all time, but I went with another issue as a favorite. I'm very glad to see the "The Nearness of You" getting the love and respect that it deserves. It was on my original list, but I decided to only include one Astro City issue and my gut said go with "Show 'Em All". |
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Post by Calamas on Dec 20, 2014 19:24:58 GMT -5
#5. Batman #291
Synopsis: When word spreads throughout the underworld that Batman has been killed, several villains take credit for the deed. So the villain community sets up a trial to test the various claims, with Ra's al Ghul acting as judge and Two-Face acting as prosecutor. First up is the Catwoman. Why I chose it: I first read this comic in an Australian reprint, but I am nominating the American original as that is the version I currently have in my collection. Acquiring it was like rediscovering part of my childhood. As for why I am nominating it, this is the first comic cover that truly fascinated me. Once I saw that moody, evocative cover I knew that I had to have the comic in order to find out what the story attached to it was. Fortunately I was able to persuade my mother to buy it for me. And the story did not disappoint, with Catwoman telling the story of how she 'murdered' Batman, and Two-Face shooting her down by pointing out the impossibility in her tale. It was just like an Encyclopedia Brown story (which I was heavily into at the time), but with superheroes! And in this story, I learnt that Brazilian pepper wood doesn't float. (Who says comics aren't educational?) This comic may also be a big part of the reason I'm a huge Catwoman fan (although I think she should never had abandoned the slit-skirted costume she wears in this issue). And this storyline is why I cut David V. Reed more slack than he really deserves as a writer. I'll never forgot my first purchase based solely on a cover. Thank goodness I wasn't disappointed. The fourth or fifth comic I ever purchased, the next day after Flash #251, Adventure Comics #452 and Wonder Woman #230 had hooked me:  (Along with Brave & Bold #136)And I’ll be discussing a subject related to your choice very soon. |
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