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Post by Deleted on Nov 22, 2022 7:59:32 GMT -5
A recent article I read stated that the Phantom has had his greatest success in Sweden and Australia. Apparently, 1,600 issues of his have been published in Sweden, while he’s been in print in Australia since 1954. That is what one writer stated, anyway, it wasn’t made clear whether these were comics, newspaper strips or a mixture of both.
My only real experience of the character - and indeed my introduction to him - was in the Defenders of the Earth cartoon. Since that time, I’ve read one or two strips. And I saw the film. Really, though, I haven’t delved into his exploits that much. I have the inclination, just not the money!
I do know various US licensees have tried, such as Harvey, Gold Key, Charlton, DC and Marvel. Doesn’t seem to be any long runs, though.
The film, which isn’t the worst but not the best it could be (IMO), was 26 years ago. I understand Hollywood gets cold feet, e.g. a seeming disinterest in Judge Dredd after two films, one of which was criticised, another which seemed to divide people.
So, while we cannot put the Phantom’s tenure in a lab and ascertain exactly why he hasn’t been successful, why do you think he hasn’t soared quite as high as others, at least within the United States?
There’s also another question to ask: I don’t know the exact year that the word “superhero” was coined (I’m sure the year will have been mentioned here), but I know I’ve read many articles where it is stated that Superman was the first superhero. However, words can be applied retrospectively so even if the word coincided with Supes’ arrival, it can be applied to others. So, given the Phantom predates Superman by two years, why are there still so many modern articles/editorials which talk about Superman being the first superhero?
(I realise that that can be a can of worms - not here, but in some fandom - as I’ve seen the likes of Flash Gordon, Doctor Who and even characters such as the Scarlet Pimpernel described as “superheroes”)
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Post by Deleted on Nov 22, 2022 8:42:58 GMT -5
It started as a comic strip from US syndicates. The series began with a daily newspaper strip on February 17, 1936, followed by a color Sunday strip on May 28, 1939; both are still running as of 2022. I'd say that's a pretty long and successful run. Very few other strips have had that kind of longevity in the US. It has had limited success translating to other mediums, but that doesn't mean it can't succeed in the US as its longevity as a syndicated strip attests to. Sometimes properties are just best suited for the medium they were created for.
I'm not sure that Phantom is available in print as a syndicated strip in nations where he has seen success in other formats. That information would be pertinent to this discussion.
-M
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Post by Deleted on Nov 22, 2022 9:02:45 GMT -5
I'm not sure that Phantom is available in print as a syndicated strip in nations where he has seen success in other formats. That information would be pertinent to this discussion. -M To be honest, the article (can’t share, it’s a paper, not online) could, in my view, have provided some context here and there. Including lots of pictures, it was 4 pages long, but the pictures were more prevalent than the text, if you ask me. For me, it’d have been helpful to know whether we were talking about strips, comics or both when the writer mentioned other countries. It does seem sad that he hasn’t had a longer run with, say, DC or Marvel, but as you say, perhaps it is best suited to the medium it was created for. I’d certainly like to read more Phantom!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 22, 2022 9:19:27 GMT -5
I'm not sure that Phantom is available in print as a syndicated strip in nations where he has seen success in other formats. That information would be pertinent to this discussion. -M To be honest, the article (can’t share, it’s a paper, not online) could, in my view, have provided some context here and there. Including lots of pictures, it was 4 pages long, but the pictures were more prevalent than the text, if you ask me. For me, it’d have been helpful to know whether we were talking about strips, comics or both when the writer mentioned other countries. It does seem sad that he hasn’t had a longer run with, say, DC or Marvel, but as you say, perhaps it is best suited to the medium it was created for. I’d certainly like to read more Phantom! I'm not sure any of the classic adventure strips that were hugely successful and started as comic strips not adaptations from other mediums (thinking Tarzan there) have flourished for extended runs in comics. They've all had successful runs in comics pre-1980s, but the success of things like Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers, Prince Valiant, Terry and the Pirates, Steve Canyon, Jungle Jim, Mandrake the Magician, and others of the ilk in comics has been spotty at best since that time-there have been mini-series and short run series for many of them, but no extended successful long term comic runs in the US, so I don't think it's a phenomenon unique to the Phantom. Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers and Phantom all successfully translated to serials and saw a lot of success in comics at various points from the 40s through the 70s, but by the 80s super-heroes native to the comic book medium had become so prolific, they squeezed a lot of the competition off the stands as their dominance of the direct market grew. And now that I mention it, the direct market may have been a factor-it is a market that grew up to support comic book super-hero comics and sold directly to comic book super-hero fans. Comic strip characters had a wider appeal and thrived when newsstands were the primary market for comics because they reached a wider audience, but when you get to the direct market, the focus of consumers and retailers is focused directly on comic book superheroes. Yes other genres, books and publishers did well in the direct market and saw opportunities, but few that had the expense and restrictions on them that syndicated characters did. In nations where Phantom thrived, I am guessing comics were still sold in more mass market outlets than the direct market provides in the US. But that may just be idle speculation on my part. -M
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 22, 2022 9:27:17 GMT -5
As said, it started as a comic strip and has a long distinguished run, here. The earliest comic, from Harvey, reprinted the strips. It had a pretty decent run at Gold Key and then King and Charlton, lasting 74 issues between the three companies. DC did a 4-issue mini-series, from Peter David and Joe Orlando & Dennis Janke, followed by a 13-issue run of a regular series, from Mark Verheiden and Luke McDonnell. Marvel briefly had the license and did 3 issues. Marvel also did 4 issues of Phantom 2040, adapting the cartoon series, from Aeon Flux's Peter Chung.
One of the issues with comic books is that it is licensed and has to answer to King Features, the syndicate that owns the property. That means they aren't free to do what they like with it. For American companies, that is a bigger deal. Also, comic book superheroes pretty much copied the formula of the Phantom, in various degrees, so that he wasn't as unique in comic books, as he was in newspapers.
The character had a highly popular movie serial, from Columbia, with Tom Tyler (of The Adv of Captain Marvel), which is very good. There was a series of books, in the early 70s, mostly written by Ron Goulart, adapting plots from the comic strips.
So, the Phantom did succeed in the US, for the better part of 40 years, with great popularity, then had peaks and valleys in the subsequent decades. In Sweden and Australia it was something different; in the US, it was different, at the start, then became a long fixture, but without much change. Jungle adventures were more exotic, in the 1930s and 40s; it's kind of hard to do that kind of thing these days.
I am willing to bet that the article you saw was written by someone whose experience with the character doesn't stretch further back than the last 20 years or so.
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 22, 2022 9:32:19 GMT -5
The Phantom's biggest successes, internationally, were in Sweden, Australia and India. That material adapted or reprinted strips, before creating new material. Australia had its own comic book industry; but, much of it was built around things like the Phantom; adventure series, but not heavy superheroes. Sweden has also been a massive market for the Disney Ducks, which waned in popularity here, then much of the new material published came from Scandinavia.
In those countries. it was published in magazine formats, often with other strips, on a mass market basis. Those markets haven't had the same development as the US, though I know Europe has seen a decline in their markets, in relation to the inroads of Manga.
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Post by badwolf on Nov 22, 2022 10:32:44 GMT -5
I remember reading his comic strip in one of the Philadelphia newspapers when I was a kid.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 22, 2022 10:42:10 GMT -5
Jungle adventures were more exotic, in the 1930s and 40s; it's kind of hard to do that kind of thing these days. I am willing to bet that the article you saw was written by someone whose experience with the character doesn't stretch further back than the last 20 years or so. Why do you think it’s hard to do those kind of things nowadays? Have jungles lost their mystique, or do you think there’s another reason? I did like jungle-based adventures at one point. As for your second point, I hate to be critical of someone else’s writing, but it’s almost like the guy might have used Wikipedia as the article didn’t have that “personal touch” you might often see.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 22, 2022 10:46:28 GMT -5
In those countries. it was published in magazine formats, often with other strips, on a mass market basis. I would so love to look at those magazine formats. Not sure we have anything comparable here, although a lot of DC reprints in the 80s had a magazine format. A Superman comic I read reprinted Byrne’s Superman, Giffen/DeMatteis JLA, plus lots of articles about subjects such as the Superman radio show, pulp heroes, etc. So, we got things like this, magazine-comic hybrid, glossy pages, contests, articles:
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Post by Cei-U! on Nov 22, 2022 11:21:38 GMT -5
Reformatted reprints of the Phantom nespaper strip ran in various issues of King Comics, Ace Comics, and Magic Comics throughout the 14-year (1936-49) lifespan of the David McKay Company's comic book line. It also was spotlighted in three issues of McKay's Feature Book, a showcase title that devoted each issue to a single King Features property, between 1938 and 1943. So Harvey did not publish the first Phantom comic in America.
Claims of Superman being the first "super-hero" are somewhat specious, as it depends on how you define that term. He was certainly not the first character with some sort of superhuman power (John Carter, Popeye), nor the first to wear a distinctive costume (Phantom, Zorro), nor the first to maintain a secret identity (Scarlet Pimpernel, The Spider), but he was the first to combine all three elements (The Shadow had his invisibility powers on radio, but not in the pulps. His comic book incarnation had them, but thaat was two years after Action #1.)
Cei-U! I summon the answers!
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Post by mikelmidnight on Nov 22, 2022 11:58:35 GMT -5
While lacking in powers (and possible a secret identity?), I think it's unquestionable that the Phantom created the contemporary visual image of the superhero.
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Post by MDG on Nov 22, 2022 12:29:26 GMT -5
The Phantom is much more popular in Australia and other countries than it's ever been in the US,though. And the newspaper strip, like Flash Gordon's only hung on as long as it did due to overseas publishers.
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Post by Prince Hal on Nov 22, 2022 13:48:08 GMT -5
There’s also another question to ask: I don’t know the exact year that the word “superhero” was coined (I’m sure the year will have been mentioned here), but I know I’ve read many articles where it is stated that Superman was the first superhero. However, words can be applied retrospectively so even if the word coincided with Supes’ arrival, it can be applied to others. So, given the Phantom predates Superman by two years, why are there still so many modern articles/editorials which talk about Superman being the first superhero? (I realise that that can be a can of worms - not here, but in some fandom - as I’ve seen the likes of Flash Gordon, Doctor Who and even characters such as the Scarlet Pimpernel described as “superheroes”) Here's a brief article that looks into the words "super" and "super-hero." The writer goes right to the OED for the history of the words and provides a nice jumping-off point for further discussion. The fuirst use of the construction "super-hero" dates back to 1899 and the infamous Dreyfus Affair. blog.oup.com/2021/09/super-takes-off/
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Post by tarkintino on Nov 22, 2022 15:24:50 GMT -5
The Phantom did have a cultural foothold in the United States to some degree. The evidence is in his presence in the ancillary market: The Phantom, a 15-chapter serial released by Columbia Pictures in 1943. Popeye Meets the Man Who Hated Laughter, was a one-hour animated segment of the anthology series, the ABC Saturday Superstar Movie, released in 1972, and produced by Al Brodax (the man behind the 1960s Popeye cartoon), and Filmation. The movie starred a number of King Features characters, including The Phantom, Steve Canyon, Hi and Lois, Blondie and more. In 1967, the Ideal toy corporation launched the 12-inch Captain Action uniform and action figure line, with its historic acquisition of numerous licenses of popular comic book and strip characters, including those from DC and Marvel. King Features' characters were also included--The Phantom among them: Of course, others have mentioned The Phantom's appearances in post-1970s media, but in the U.S., he was popular enough (or significant cultural awareness) to enjoy merchandise and film/cartoon adaptations over the decades.
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Post by Cei-U! on Nov 22, 2022 17:09:58 GMT -5
I didn't have a Captain Action but his Phantom costume fit my G.I. Joe Action Marine perfectly.
Cei-U! I summon the purple playsuit!
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