Hibou

In order to start this next post I need to (sadly) "Flashback" to three years ago, but actually four years ago now...

Yeah, I know this was supposed to tie into Wonder Woman and my 'Wonder Women' - so why am I starting this with the Scarlet Speedster?!

So, just to summarize that linked post, it was in April of 2020 (theendoftheworld) when I was in this frame of mind as I posted to Rob on that early Spring day in 2020.

So it was in this period, four years ago when I happened to stumble upon a sales thread from Sharon ( @skypinkblu ) and purchased her copy of Flash #123 which I still proudly own. 

So what are the chances... what are the chances that during my darkest days, I would (once again) happen to find my way onto these boards and stumble onto a sales thread of hers during the winter months of 2023?

Recently, I've been introduced to the concept of these "Earth Angles" 

Well...

It was in December of last year (2023) that I once again hit a personal low. 

But in this case, it wasn't because of a personal loss but more because of a financial loss. 

I doubt I'll ever tell the story here but I can strongly announce here that for the first time in my life, in the professional world, I now believe that the only true source I can trust, is myself. 

And that, in-itself, is my win.

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My son, David, was born a week before Christmas and so this was an incredibly difficult time for us as a family and as so, one night...

I found myself pouring a Scotch and browsing through these board posts to numb the pain. 

So, of course, it was around this time that I, once again, stumbled upon a sales thread from Sharon ( @skypinkblu ) ... what were the chances, right?!

Well... here we were.

She was, once again, selling a portion of her collection, and here I was just falling into her sales thread.

This one book that she had for sale, absolutely grabbed a hold of me.

Just as I needed that Flash #123... I needed this copy as well.

I sent a DM to Sharon about this book and we were able to strike a deal.

That wasn't the prize though.

Sharon, is forever the Den-mother here and she can intuitively sense when one of us is enduring something devastating.  Well... such was the experience here.  The value in this interaction with Sharon wasn't in buying a "comicbook" from her.. rather, it was in the personal stories she shared that helped me work through my own personal catastrophe.

Thank you so much, Sharon.. prayers to you and you family.

One day I hope to meet you and give you the biggest hug!   

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So what was this book that I found from her?

Well... only her origin.

My Wonder Woman!

Ok, now that I've gone through and cleaned up some of the mess of posts from the weekend, I can try to get back on track.  I kind of got myself stuck... and started to sink into that dark abyss that I sometimes find myself in.  Was all that brought on by watching that special, "The Day the Music Died"?

I think so. 

It's a depressing song as it looks back on unrest and tragic loss.

So when getting into that mindset and simultaneously looking back on my family, it leaves me with good memories but with a lot of sadness.  My younger daughter will be graduating in two weeks after having spent the last 4 years in college.  That's kind of where I started this journal... starting it back at the onset of our "suspicious pandemic"...

2020 - Theendoftheworld.

The Day the Music Died.

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In these 4 years, my younger one has lived through a shut down, seen mass protests and civil unrest, escaped to what I can only describe as an island of magic only to return and have to face a crushing and devastating loss to our family.

That's where I was trying to head with the start of my Wonder Woman post before I derailed myself.

And that all started with Lynda Carter's social media post which slid right into The Day the Music Died.

That being said, there are a lot of really good people in this community but I found it interesting that it was two sales from the same board member that served as bookends during two moments of uncertainty and tragedy.

And that's what I'll get to first before I get into Free Comic Book Day.

Suspicious activities all around us... it's been that way for a number of years. 

So much of this has affected so many of us and it seems to be spinning faster and faster.  This video doesn't really tie into that concept I'm describing but it's a great Elvis song. 

I suppose this is what I was trying to tie into my post from last weekend...

It's kind of funny how watching this Don Mclean special is injecting itself into what I was going to talk about next.

It might be easier fro me to just finish up this one thread before getting into the events of today and FCBD. 

So yes, I'll try to pull together this Wonder Woman thread since that's what I started last night. 

I wasn't sure how to start tonight's entry as it was a very eventful and wonderful day, all based around the annual FCBD (Free Comic Book Day) event. 

That being said, maybe I'll try to merge two threads into one and at least start this next chapter that I started last night with the Wonder Woman post.

So, I'll start with this being my current state of mind...

I've poured a Scotch and I'm listening / watching the streaming special "The Day The Music Died".

This somehow works out to be a very nice segue for this next book I've decided to talk about.

As I was browsing through social media over the course of the week, I saw that Gal Gadot's birthday had passed (April 30, 1985) and a certain iconic Wonder Woman legend acknowledged that passing. Lynda Carter, who will be 73 this July as she was born in 1951, posted a Happy Birthday note to Gal Gadot, who turned 39 this year, accompanied by this photo that was taken 8 years ago in 2016!

This was not posted but I love it, nonetheless...

(Just recently purchased.)

So...

Wonder Woman.

I have two amazing daughters and an amazing wife and the three of them have stepped into that role time and time again. 

I'm sorry but there's not enough Scotch in the house for me to get into those stories right now. 

All I know is that without these three incredible females... I'm not here anymore to write these nonsensical stories.

Ok, that got a bit deep - sincere apologies.

The only thing I can make sense of is that it seems we're certainly living within the Waters of Chaos and at this point, who knows how that will be resolved.

I guess it's only appropriate that I'm watching the awesome 2022 Matt Reeves Batman movie tonight as I start this latest entry. 

I'm really looking forward to the Penguin series that should be debuting this fall.  At the end of filming, there was a rumor that Robert Pattinson was seen on set... we'll see.  

It's funny... I look at this picture and I'm reminded of the world that I kind of left behind. 

The fun I had when writing about this fictional run in with the TVA surrounding the acquisition of this amazing book that Rob got for me. 

Those were some fun nights... if only things were still that innocent for me. 

Anyways, yes this book is still one of my favorite items that I own.  I keep checking for when they'll release the long awaited Superman book as well as the Wonder Woman book, but as I look on their website, they've pulled any mention of those books as well as this TVA hunted Gotham 1919 - 1939 book.

I guess the TVA won. 

They found the book...

Fun times.

I just found this image in my files and figured it was too late to go back and throw it in as an 'Edit' to last weekends post, so I'll add it here.

Two years ago, I made this card for my uncle to celebrate his 77th birthday.  It kind of nicely compliments the thoughts I wrote about last weekend.

Rest in Peace..

 So with that, I'll get back to some of the recent books that I've picked up.  I guess it would be appropriate to mention this duplicate Batman book that I couldn't pass up.  This book has become kind of a game for me, as the first thing I look at is the wrap and then go to three different elements with the composition. 

Before I get to talking about that in more detail, I have to post this trailer that was recently released for the new Joker: Folie à Deux movie, set to be released later this year staring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga.

It looks really good to me and I love that mirror scene with the slow merging of his reflection and the drawn grin! 

So I found another copy of Batman #251 but this one was not only priced well, but the centering game I play on this one was just about perfect.  As I've mentioned many times before, with these early 1970's DC books, the first thing I look for are the two complete full circles of the logo and the price, but with this particular book, trying to find a complete and centered bat logo is next to impossible.  What I mean by that, is a copy that shows the full tip of the right bat wing.  This book, even though it's only a CGC 4.0, is about as good as I think I'll ever find to that bit of criteria I look for. 

So with this book you have multiple elements that make it challenging as the Joker's shoulder and his coat tail have to be exactly flush with the spine of the book in order for that bat wing tip to show.

So I didn't really need to purchase this book... I believe it was off of Mercari, but it's nice to have a copy that has fulfilled those markers that I look for in this issue.

I'm sure everyone has their theme song, right?!

I mean, it has to be common knowledge by now that this is Rob's ...

Anyways, this would be mine - as this life has certainly been a VERY Long Journey!

After that last post, of course I have to add this...

I know that last post was a bit random so I'll try to fill in some details here.

This weekend I attended a funeral in Schuylerville, NY at the Gerald B.H. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery.  After my son passed away last August, my family was hit with another loss as my uncle unexpectedly passed away in October of 2023.  It took those 6 months before my aunt could secure a time there for a service.  Apparently there was that long of a waiting list. 

It's a beautiful veterans cemetery... https://www.cem.va.gov/cems/nchp/geraldbhsolomonsaratoga.asp surrounded by soft hills, farms and the nearby Hudson River.

My uncle served in the US Army and fought in Vietnam.  The service this weekend was quite emotional despite us all having felt the loss back in October.  Not only was he my uncle but he was my Godfather as well and had a very strong influence on me growing up.  I wrote about him a little bit in a post on here around a year and a half ago as it related to how he was the one that picked my NFL football team for me, the Los Angeles Rams...

My aunt and uncle were living in Florida for a number of years but were preparing to move up to Connecticut to be closer to their daughter, my cousin.  My uncle lived here since immigrating from France in the 1950's up until they decided to move down to Florida.  He always liked monsters, creatures and anything weird... he had a very unique way of looking at the world and followed his passion to become an accomplished poet later in his life.  He authored numerous books and created quite the poets society where he was living in Florida.  As my parents cultivated my interest and love for all things related to Marvel and DC, my uncle did the same in terms of weird creatures and monsters.  In the 1970's, he would regularly buy comics for me from the local newsstand and would encourage me to get material other than the superheroes.  Among the comics that he would get for me were the Godzilla comics.  Godzilla was a favorite of mine and my older cousin as well.  Even to this day, we'll talk about all of the classic Godzilla movies.

I've told this to my daughter so she knows my love for Godzilla which is why she purchased this amazing matchbox set from a flea market in Japan last year. 

The backs of the boxes are a puzzle and create a whole image...

Now my father also liked the monster stuff too but he was more in tune with the Universal Monsters so I guess I didn't stand a chance... this was destined to be a deep interest of mine!  Anyways, one night last year, as late fall shifted into early winter, I was mindlessly scrolling through items on Mercari and eBay.  Still grieving over David and now my Uncle Dan, I stopped on this book and it brought all of these memories that I just wrote about, right back up to the surface.  It didn't matter to me what the grade was and it was very inexpensive so I just decided to get it. 

It was a memory of my dear uncle just as that New Mutants #98 was a memory of my son, David.

This is just such a cool Herb Trimpe cover as were many of those early Godzilla comics. 

As for the grade, it looks great to me! A near perfect wrap with White pages - I'm not sure why it was only a VF-

So that's the story behind my impromptu posting of last night.  Thank you Uncle Dan for Godzilla and the LA Rams... we had a helluva draft this weekend.  A lot of new fresh talent just came on board.

Fifty years a Rams fan and still going...

As this entry enters its final words, my family was able to pay their final tributes to my dear uncle who was also my dear Godfather.

Rip, Dan... and thank you for the Rams and Godzilla.

I forgot to mention the other night that the LP set in the background of the picture of the Street & Smith book set is a fantastic 4 vinyl set called "The Story of The Shadow".  It was released in 1985 as it looks back on 50 plus years of The Shadow and contains wonderful interviews and recollections from the likes of Anthony Tollin, Walter B. Gibson, Brett Morrison and many, many more.  There's a lot of stories from the 'behind-the-scenes' production of the radio program which I find to be a joy to listen to. 

As a matter of fact, despite it being just over 2 hours long, this has become one of my favorite 'distractions' to listen to while driving late at night as I've done so 4 or 5 times now.

You can find the 4 LP set (or CD's) on various sites easily enough but it's also posted here on YouTube as well...

http://www.radiospirits.com/detailsv2.asp?mbprodid=55433

https://www.abebooks.co.uk/STORY-SHADOW-record-box-set-Radiola/31441572153/bd

As always...

To be continued.

And so, as I ended last nights post, although edited, I'll end this one as well.

I think of this everyday as I hold this device in my hand.

This black, oblong object that seems to control my thoughts and actions, yet they call it a smart phone.  In this song, I believe he's referencing a television but it's kind of the same I guess.

Sometimes nights like last night catch me off guard.  It begins innocently enough as I indulge in my ultimate distractions but then the inevitable creeps in and absolutely engulfs me... I know my wife experiences this as well on a daily basis.  This afternoon, we took off for the day to maybe do some 'antiquing', while hitting some thrift stores and antique shops around an hour north of here.  We didn't find much today but I found a few good modern comics.  Probably my best pull was a copy of Ultimate Fantastic Four #21 and the first appearance of the Marvel Zombies. 

That book was $2 at a thrift store.

Anyways, this next part kind of illustrates what I just mentioned above.

Mu wife and I had just walked into this mall and there was actually a real arcade there.  I was initially going to walk past but I was curious as to what an arcade actually was these days.  Not much in terms of 'video games' but a lot of 'ticket prize' games.  So as we left, my wife said to me... "Didn't you used to take David to the arcade at (our local mall)?"  I answered yes and she replied that he always had so much fun there.  Then she added that he always had so much fun everywhere I took him.  She quickly added that I was 'his person'.  Couples sometimes have their own vocabulary and I knew exactly what she meant by this and like I mentioned above, right there in the middle of this mall, I nearly lost it. 

I had to distract myself while passing by a pet store selling puppies...

And with that...

Back to the program.

As we were out and going through this one antique mall, I thought to myself that through all of our travels over the course of the  past 2 years, I have only found two Shadow and/or Blue Coal related items in all of our travels throughout New York State and down to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  The first item was the Shadow / Blue Coal blotter from Canada that I included in the above post and the second item was the Living Shadow book... both items purchased at different locations in Rochester, New York.

So this is about a good enough spot to segue back to that book I just bought some weeks ago.

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As I was so thrilled to have a copy of that first book, "The Living Shadow", I went online to see if I could find the other two volumes, "Eyes of The Shadow" and "The Shadow Laughs".  As luck would have it, mycomicshop.com (Lonestar Comics) had both volumes and one had just been drastically reduced in price.  I couldn't believe the luck here and immediately placed both in my cart and couldn't check out fast enough.  They really have impeccable service and are always a rock solid resource for me in terms of acquiring material.  I love having this whole set and now that I know that they were published in 1933 by Street & Smith, just adds more delicious history to this journey!

To be continued...

I never got the chance to show you this page - I think you would've loved to see this.

I knew I was destined to reach this point if I typed on here long enough...

If I spent an hour on here trying to accurately describe how much I've missed you - I would've failed miserably.

Goodnight David.

I do have to mention my new favorite site as it ties into a blog and that would be...

The Shadowcast.

(Just look at this site's layout. How can you not be drawn in?!)

The producer of this series seems to be a living expert on the subject if anyone is interested...

Anyways, I've spent numerous nights listening to these podcasts and it has personally, helped me a lot. 

This one is a good one to start with as it's a subject that has not been extensively covered...

I can't emphasize this enough...

When facing catastrophic personal tragedy, it's vital to have a solid foundation around you consisting of a loving family and stellar friends. 

In addition, it helps if you have a life long passion that seems to swirl around you and intervenes when it's deemed most necessary.

And that's where I'll start this entry tonight.

I know that I kind of paused the discussion of X-Men and Fantastic Four books on here and replaced that with more Shadow material but for good reason... at this point in this personal maelstrom that I find myself in, it's this that has seemed to ground me as it speaks of a different time... a better time.  Perhaps a more innocent time, although I write that with the caveat being that perhaps a more innocent time simply means when things were more black and white.

I'll cut that thought off here... otherwise, I'll get myself into a rambling of thought that will surely get me kicked off of the boards.

I will return to the discussion of FF books and X-Men books soon enough though.

But for now, I'm deep into this "Spinning Wheel" and it's so therapeutic.

If only I could recruit The Shadow to help me solve this personal mystery and tragedy!

If only...

Anyways, tonight I went through and scanned all of my BlueCoal blotters featuring The Shadow and I'm glad I did as I did not realize that I have doubles and even triples in some of these.  Of course I'm speaking of the graphics as the business name will always change despite these being pretty rare finds as they are.  This one here is my favorite and is the one that was purchased as a plaque from adventurehouse.com. The back of these blotters would mostly feature the BlueCoal logo but sometimes they would just feature a plain blue background made to absorb excess ink.

So here is my collection of BlueCoal / Shadow blotters as it stands right now.

I've also included the adhesive sticker that I have as well... I'm not sure what this was originally meant for outside of a paper sticker of sorts.

And these are the blotters that I've assembled...

On 4/17/2024 at 12:15 AM, OtherEric said:

The Shadow book was copyright 1931, since that was the copyright on the original story.  It was actually published later, ISFDB says 1933.

And that explains it.

I just posted this in another thread here on the boards but now I am very, very confused about something that I never thought of before. 

I think I'll have to start a thread elsewhere to try and find the answer...

Sorry about this not being a comic but it was Street & Smith's cross marketing for their Shadow Detective Monthly Magazine that was found in their February 13th, 1932 issue of Love Story Magazine. 

The image is that of James LaCurto who was the first to voice the narration of The Shadow on the Detective Story Hour radio show in 1930.

(Sadly, not my copy...)