Theagenes

Hi Bob, welcome back. Is the sentence highlighted above left over from an earlier version of the article before the 1932 Standard Oil was discovered? And anyway, wouldn't the 1929 Funnies series be the first comic tabloids outside a newspaper?

Just got this from Metro. This completes my run of GA John Carter covers! My scanner is kaput so here's Metro's scan:

I've got a couple of auctions ending later this morning, if anyone's interested: The Funnies 36 and 40 (John Carter of Mars covers) and Famous Funnies 209 (Frazetta cover). LINK

Steve, I had intended to comment on this earlier, but I got a little distracted by Jon's post. I would imagine that the reason that Marsh signed each page was not due to vanity, but rather because he originally conceived DD as a newspaper strip. Each of these pages would have been designed as an individual sunday page. Like I mentioned in my first post in this thread, these early original comic magazines were often just springboards for creators that were trying to get their work in the newspapers where the real money was at. This definately seems to be the case with Marsh and Detective Dan/Dan Dunn. This book would have made the perfect portfolio for Marsh to shop around to syndicate execs -- 30+ sundays ready to go with sales figures to point to as well. Apparently it worked as NEA picked it up and Dan Dunn started running in fall of 1933. If, as Bob B. suggests, Marsh was also the publisher of the Humor books, in addition to being a contributor, then the fact that Humor closed it's doors that fall may have been due not to a lack of funds, but to the fact that Marsh had accomplished his real goal -- a syndicated newspaper strip -- and there was no longer any need to bother with stand-alone original comic books anymore. It would be very interesting to see some of the eariest Dann Dunn sundays -- are any of them reprints of these stories in Detective Dan or did he start over fresh? I believe Wu Fang did appear as a villain in the Dan Dunn strips -- Was his his first appearance in the strips a reprint of the preview page on the inside BC of Detective Dan? These would interesting things to follow up on. Who here has a run of Crackajack Funnies they don't mind flipping through?

The deafing silence on my my part is not from disdain, but from sheer awe.

Got it! In fact I picked it up right after we first started discussing these books in the platinum thread a few months ago. I think it may be the only thing I've ever bought from Chuck R. Interesting about size difference between AK and BS - I didn't realize that. I was thinking that the size reduction after DD might have reflected an attempt to reduce printing costs, but if they're all different sizes, maybe I'm just reading to much into that.

Well, it is also the first appearance of Dan Dunn (more important than Wu Fang IMO), who went on to have a long running newspaper strip and even a short lived radio show. The reprints of the strip were a back up feature in Crackajack Funnies. I suppose what fascinates me the most about the Humor books is that are incredibly inportant and yet we know so little about them and their publisher. We don't even know for sure exactly when they were published or in what order, though it does seem pretty clear that DD was first. As far as datable information goes these are things we have as far aas I know (Steve, I'm doing this memory so please correct me if I'm wrong): 1) Detective Dan is copyrighted 1933 and has an ad for kids to enter contest, the entries for which have to be postmarked by April of that year (Is that correct, Steve?). That gives us a solid terminus ante quem of April 1933 for DD, probably several months earlier so the kids would have time to get their entries in. 2) Interviews with Siegel (NEMO #2?) suggest they were looking at DD in spring of 1933. The similarities with the two looped "O's" in the word "Cartoons" on both the early Superman cover which Schuster tried to burn and cover of Ace King suggest that S&S had also seen the latter. The burning of the Superman cover took place in the Fall of 1933, giving a terminus ante quem of Sept./Oct. 1933 for Ace King. 3) Bob Scully has an ad for Happy Mulligan which doesn't seem to have been published. DD has ad for DD #2 and Ace King has an ad for Ace King #2, neither of which seem to have been published. Steve, maybe you can confirm this but I seem to remember reading in the Platinum List archives that Ace King has an ad for Bob Scully. Is that correct or is my memory faulty? 4) Ace King and Bob Scully are the same size, but DD is slightly larger, suggesting that DD was first. This suggests to me the order of publication was DD, AK, BS, (?). Jon Berk pointed out in the old "Before New Fun" thread that the second Joe Palooka strip in Funnies on Parade appeared in papers on June 4, 1933, meaning that FoP had to have come after that. So one thing that can be said for certain is that Detective Dan predates Funnies on Parade by at least a couple of months and probably longer than that.

Awesome books! I've never seen the Circus book before. I don't suppose you have New Fun #3 do you? I would love to see a close pic of it. As near as I can tell it seems to be the first comic with a Sci-Fi cover -- can anyone confirm that? Mark, I just wanted to further clarify my reasons for starting this thread so there's no hard feelings. As the OO thread was breathing its last, Bill, Steve and I were discussing Steve's Humor books. Bill suggested that we let the OO thread die, start a pre-GA thread and move the conversation there. That was really why I started this thread -- I wasn't trying to rip-off your thread idea or steal your thunder, but the original premise of your Platinum thread was definately my inspiration.

Cool books! I didn't realize there were any King covers with Flash Gordon, even one of the multi-character type layouts like this.

Yeah, I know, but I think after the first page or two, people didn't read your parameters in the first post and just saw the word "Platinum" in the title. Next thing you know it was a Cupples & Leon-fest. Those are cool books, but I was really interested in your original intention for that thread, so I thought I'd try again, this time carefully avoiding the word Platinum. So come on, Mark, I know you have some great books from this period -- let's see some!

That's what I'm talking about! Congrats on aquiring it. Very cool of CentaurMan to free up his hoard.

Most people consider the first appearance of Superman in Action #1 to be the beginning of the Golden Age of comic books and clearly that was a defining moment in comic history. But the modern comic book magazine format was born five years earlier. Everyone knows the standard story about how Max Gaines in 1933 folded a newspaper comic tabloid in half. etc. inspiring Funnies on Parade, A Carnival of Comics, Famous Funnies Series 1, and finally the monthly Famous Funnies in 1934, all strip reprints. The next year, Major Wheeler-Nicholson, inspired by the British Comic Cuts came out with an original material comicmagazine New Fun. In 1936, the succes of Famous Funnies led the major newpaper strip syndicates like King Features, NEA and UFS to get in on the action with King Comics, Tip Top, Popular Comics and the Funnies. Today we know that there is more to that picture. In 1929 George Delacorte and Eastern collaborted on a newstand comic tabloid, the Funnies. In early 1933 Eastern produced a series of comic tabloids for several oil companies prior to Funnies on Parade. And about the same time a small publisher in Chicago named Humor produced at least three original comic books Detective Dan, Ace King and Bob Scully, which would inspire a young Siegel and Schuster. Throughout this period the strip reprint books dominated the market. It's funny now as original comic books from this period like New/More Fun, Wow, New Adventure, early 'Tecs, etc. are far more desirable to most collectors than the reprint books, but at the time they were the equivilent of straight-to-video movies. They were at best potential springboards for struggling young creators trying to get into the newspaper strips were the real action (and $$$) was. It was Action #1 that demonstrated that original comic books could be successful. The period from 1933 (1929?) to 1938 doesn't get as much attention as it once did, but I've become very interested in this early phase of the modern comic book and I'd like to explore it more in this thread. I'd like to see some of these great early books. So post your Famous Funnies, New Fun, King Comics, Ace, Tip Top, Detective Picture Stories and any others from this period! I wish I had a bunch of great early books to start things out, but alas, I only own one book from this period (so far ). It's low grade and I've posted it before, but it'll have to do. First "real" Tarzan cover from 1936:

Kudos to whomerjay for an awesome Frazetta Buck Rogers!! Shipped fast and packed tight!! Thanks a lot!!

Man, once again I am just in awe of you guys' books. Planet 1-22 is a run I would love to put together someday, but I afraid right now it's out of my league. All I have so far is a VG copy of #9. Long way to go.

The Allentown 'Tec 33 definately. I might look into seeing if the resto could be removed though.

Be warned - acquiring the Gerber books can hazardous to your bank account. Every time I look through them two or three books get added to my want list. It's an absolutely crucial reference work if you collect GA. The scarcity index rates scarcity on scale of 1 to 11, with 1 being very common and 11 being non-existent. The numbers according to Gerber are: 1-4 - Common to average scarcity 5 - 200-1000 copies exist 6 - 50-200 copies 7 - 20-50 copies 8 - 10- 20 9 - 5-10 10 - less than 5 copies known 11 - Non-existent but known to have been printed Keep in mind that these numbers were put together before the internet and eBay and many books are now known to be more common than once thought. A good rule of thumb is to double his numbers to get a more accurate idea of what's out there. That said there are also a number of books that have turned out to be much scarcer than he thought (or at least they don't come on the market very often). In general though it is pretty accurate in a relative sense, if not an absolute sense. You won't regret picking the set up just for the amazing photos if nothing else.

Action 1, no brainer.

Let's see if I can remember them all: 1. Cap 2. Supes 3. Suspense 4. Marvel 5. Action 6. Tec 7. Whiz 8. PL Gotta go with the Keys

How about some GGA. I just posted a Planet Comics 53 FN-VF in the Marketplace. LINK

The Fantagraphics reprints are great. I had thought at one time I would try to put together the whole 50 volume Prince Valiant set, but some of the issues are just impossible to find, like the early ones and some of volumes in the 30's, and they sell for crazy prices when they do pop up. Maybe some day, but for now I'd rather spend that money on actual GA comics. Maybe I'll try and pick up a nice Feature Book 26 to get my PV fix.

Prince Valiant (Fantagraphics) Vol. 1 - The Prophecy VF-NM OOP and tough to find. $75

John Carter of Mars Four Color 437 (#2) Dell 1952 - CGC 7.0 (Cream to off-white pages) Serial #0058807007 (a really nice 7.0) $80

This was an excellent idea for a thread. I'll throw in a few things. I kind of like posting the scans here, but if it's not cool somebody let me know and I'll remove them. (Disclaimer: my scanner is broken so I apologize in advance. PM me for better photos, BCs, etc. if you want them) Buck Rogers 1933 Kellogg's Premium G- First Radio premium. Text by Nowlan, illustrated by Calkins. One interior illustration clipped, some pencil doodling on a few pages. $60

yes, a long time ago at a comicon, same publisher Harvey also did a B&W small size mailed only to subscribers for Boy Explorers #2 four years earlier in 1946 Thanks Bob! I have seen copies of All-New #15, Boy Explorers #2 and Stuntman #3, which were the other small B&W subscriber-only issues, but never the Flash Gordon. Also, Gerber lists the other three but not Flash Gordon and that was what was making me think it might be one of the fake OPG listings. Damn, I guess I have a new grail to search for now.

In another thread, I asked if anyone could confirm the existence of Flash Gordon (Harvey) #5, but got no response. It's one I've wondered about as well. It was supposedly one of the issues that was only mailed to subscribers. Has anyone ever seen one of these?