Hibou

This is an incredible piece of history form my home town!

This is absolutely amazing... I love looking at this and knowing that a fellow boardie owns this!

Sorry... I've been a bit distracted. I'm guessing a "Bed Sheet" is an oversized pulp prior to 1930? I've looked up this year's Pulp Fest and as it coincides with my vacation, I'm thinking a summer destination to Pittsburgh, PA might be in the works this year. My question is this, as I've been to numerous Comic Conventions, are Pulp Fests similar in terms of the cross interest? What I mean is that with Comic Cons, you get a lot of comics and toys but with a Pulp Fest, do you get pulps and other types of promotional material?

Current timeline (2023). The way The Matrix works (or is that the TVA?), is that it coordinates words and phrases and in that last post, I mentioned Chester Morris. Here... Well, this week, I just heard some recent news regarding another Chester, one that passed away, way too soon. I just heard this new Linkin Park tune that was recorded 20 years ago for their Meteora album, but never released. The absolute sad thing about it is that based on what we know of Chester's condition, this could've been written just 6 years ago, right before his death RIP Chester Bennington... (FYI - I believe this video is from your AI )

Between that cover image from the October1, 1936 issue of The Shadow Magazine and the revelation of what I had read from Alter Ego Magazine #176, I needed to go back and check some information that perhaps I hadn't remembered correctly. I had read an awful lot about Bob Kane and watched a number of interviews and for some reason, I could not recall him ever mentioning The Shadow ... ... But, waitaminute. If I'm convinced that the creation of Batman could not have happened without The Shadow, why was I having such a hard time directly relating the two, as Anthony Tollin had done in his magnificent article in Alter Ego 176? So I went back in time, (or is that jumping forward in time?) to the early 1990's and revisited my friend, Stan Lee's interview with Bob Kane. Surely, I would have my answer here. Well, after re-watching this now for a third time (and this time was far worse than the others in terms of 'cringe inducing'), the evidence was clear. Bob Kane kept to his story, as the official inspiration for Batman being that from, Zorro with Douglas Fairbanks, The Bat (Whispers with Chester Morris - but from the Roland West movie) and lastly, Leornardo Davici's flying machine. To be fair, the mask and the cape depicted on the ad for The Bat, match what we know was featured on the original concept for Batman, which I'll get to later. ... ... There's still no mention of The Shadow. Well, when you're committing the crime, you would want to misdirect any suspicions, right? Right. I will say this, these two men are legends in the comic book community and to watch this interaction, even though at times a bit awkward (Hey, Bob... leave Jerry alone!), it's certainly entertaining. RIP Stan and Bob (even if you were a shrewd busi... sorry.) Bob Kane reveals his influences here at 4:25... And so here we are... I'm sorry Bob, but you failed to mention (in my opinion) your major influences. Well, to be fair, I need to (sadly) add Bill Finger's name in here as well. I didn't hear you mention Walter B. Gibson's name, Theodore Tinsley's name or even Orson Welles. Why is that?! My wife just sent me this picture of this episode of Columbo she was watching and it pretty much perfectly sums it all up...

I found myself getting pulled into the world of pulps (once again) although I could tell that there was something more involved this time around. There was more depth it seemed. Now this was right around last November (2022) when I could tell that a shift was approaching. I was paying more attention to pulps and looking up various titles, such as Weird Tales and some other horror related material. I couldn't believe just how many incredible covers were out there! I remember thinking to myself that these were kind of hidden, under the mainstream and for me, an untapped avenue to explore. I was spending a lot of time thinking about them in relation to what we had seen happen in the comic collecting community over the past two years. I had many passing thoughts and some would question whether or not pulps could reach that level of interest and speculation. The only thing that I felt they lacked was the current pop culture context to pull them along. There was no Weird Tales Cinematic Universe or anything like that so I couldn't see how an outside influence like that could increase the interest in pulps. I did think to myself that what would make these 'pop', for lack of a better term, was grading. I remember thinking, "Wow, what it CGC started grading these?!" (At this time, I had no idea that this was actually a thing.) So for days, I would lightly browse through various cover gallery's of pulp titles, noting particular covers and subject matter It was right about here, just 4 months ago, in November of 2022 (close to when I bought those two Atlas horror titles) when this weird synchronization of events seemed to come out of the ether and descended on me in a cloud of revelation, inspiration, excitement and wonderment! It started one night while I was driving out to Buffalo, NY. I had the music from my phone randomly playing through the thousands of songs on it as I was just kind of lost in my thoughts of the age of pulps... going through the decades. From the turn of the century titles that I was seeing all the way through to the 50's. I think I was kind of caught up in thinking about what were those days like when these pulps were the main source of literary entertainment. Lost in thought, with but a few passing cars to divert my attention and just the illuminated road ahead of me, this song came on. I had heard it before but not in some years. It was from Robbie Robertson's Sinematic release that came out in 2019. I think that last time I listened to it was in 2020 and I remember hearing this song but not really paying much attention to it. So I'm not sure if it was my mindset at the time, just the night or maybe the planetary alignments, but whatever it was, it hit home somehow. The song is called, The Shadow. We were gathered in the front room Round the old RCA For another episode of mystery And suspense Orson Welles as The Shadow Comin' over the airwaves In search of the Black Opal All he found was bloodstains I saw a reflection (all right) In a broken mirror And that's when I knew The Shadow was here Way back in the radio days (that's right) The Shadow was here The Black Opal Had been stolen From a princess In Zanzibar Lives have been lost In this ruthless escapade They called upon Lamont Cranston Otherwise known as The Shadow To track down this killer thief And return the precious stone I saw a reflection (yeah) In a broken mirror And that's when I knew The Shadow was here From way back in the day (Mm-hmm) Of the radio years (that's right) Fighting crime and injustice The Shadow was here What evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows (The Shadow knows - hahahaha) When he returned from Bombay With a stop in Tibet Where he studied with the masters Learned the secrets of the dead He made himself invisible And captured this killer thief Recovered the Black Opal And summoned the police. I saw a reflection (all right) In a broken mirror That's when I knew The Shadow was here From back in the days (yeah) Of the radio years (that's right) Fighting crime and injustice The Shadow was here After the song was over, I kind of felt frozen... I played it again. And again. The Shadow? I knew a little about this character and had heard the usual condensed write ups... a pulp hero from the 30's, radio show... nothing much more than that aside from the Kaluta DC series of the 70's. When I got to Buffalo that night, I took my phone and browsed through various images of The Shadow pulps along with a little mix of Doc Savage and the Phantom Detective. I was shocked at extensive number of issues there were... I had no idea that these titles dated back to the early 30's. I guess I always thought that these were late 30's, from time of the Orson Welles radio shows in 1937 and 1938. That discovery got me thinking of timelines in general and that's where it really all started to fall in place. The next day, before I went into work, I started to do a little more research on The Shadow, digging a bit deeper into the character and his evolution and of course, looking at more and more of the pulps. I was getting quickly captivated by these awesome covers. Then one night, it might've been the weekend now, I saw this one cover and it absolutely floored me. This cover, this one image, shattered all the timelines but I couldn't explain it. I could just feel it... almost like someone had drew aside the curtain and there it was, plain as day! The date on this issue of The Shadow Magazine was October 1, 1936. The second I saw this cover, I said to myself, "That's Batman!". There was no doubt in my mind. I looked at the date again, it was a 3 years before Batman debuted in Detective Comics #27. I quickly looked up Bob Kane's birthday (at this point, I didn't consider the complexity of this matter entirely and I'll get to that later.) and saw that he was born in 1915... (later, I looked up Bill Finger's birthday and saw that he was born a year earlier in 1914). So in 1936, when this one particular issue was on the newsstand, Bob Kane would've been 21 (Bill Finger - 22). At this moment, it struck me that this one image had to have had a profound, lasting influence on these two young men. In addition to these thoughts, I also had "The Book" floating around in my head... the one that showcases an alternative timeline for Batman. I think these thoughts gelled at once and suddenly, I was hooked! The amazing covers aside, I had to look further in this newly found fascination of mine. The first thing I had to do though, was purchase a copy of this revealing issue. Since that day, I've purchased another much nicer copy along with a reprint. I guess this falls in line with my desire to pair up books but it makes sense as this copy is what basically started me down this incredibly fun path I'm on! The Shadow Magazine : October 1, 1936 As I wrote, things were lining up all over the place at this point and it was just a week afterwards that I went to my LCS and this was sitting right there on the shelf for me. This fantastic issue of Alter Ego Magazine #176 ... That evening, I poured a Scotch and sat down to read through this issue and it was on page 52, where my collecting life basically changed thanks in part to Anthony Tollin. This information perfectly buttressed what I had 'seen' but couldn't explain with the October 1st 1936 issue of The Shadow ... the article revealed to me how exactly one month after this issue that had captivated me, on November 1st, 1936, Batman was born. This was the first time I had heard or read about this and it was incredible! Like I said, I was hooked now on to the character known as The Shadow and I had to look further into this Crime that was Committed! Bob Kane / Bill Finger

It's kind of crazy to think about how everything had to line up just right in order to give us the history that we have as it relates to pop culture. So, as I've dragged this out long enough and I guess it's time to go here and reveal what this whole 1936 thing is anyways.

Just a great song...

It's getting difficult to keep this journal from venturing into non comic related material as I was just about to go on about automotive headlights and their advancements and annoyance.

Saturday night. How can it be more exciting than doing taxes when you're supposed to be out enjoying a beer or two (or three or four...)?! Anyways, earlier today, I received a small package from eBay. It sat on my porch until about an hour ago when I decided to bring it in. I opened it up, inspected the contents and returned to finishing up the State and Federal taxes. And then, out of the blue, it hit me... just a random, thought! "Does she sound like (older) Stevie Nicks or what?!" No, that wasn't the random thought, although it was close! Actually, it was more in line with this. The Batman came this close to not being created at all...

Thank you so much for that information. I was wondering about how missing back covers factor into grading... this copy was affordable because it is missing the back cover. The tape reinforcement matches the others in this lot that I looked through, including those 1938 issues.

Here's another question... as I was looking through other threads from various chat boards, I found a discussion about sealing bags vs. leaving them open in order for them to 'breathe'. Is that really a thing?

Thanks! I saw Bookery's Guide mentioned in another thread but I see it's not available on Amazon. Is there another source? I haven't checked eBay yet...

This thread has been a wealth of information regarding grading and overhang, etc.

Just a little more information about how I got here. It's finally dawned on me how everything that I've ever loved about comics and the characters within, stem from pulps to a large degree and that has fascinated me. This wasn't some new revelation, as it's been often written about, but when you actually see it and feel it... it's quite an amazing experience. That's the first part... the second part is wanting to reacquire (and successfully doing so) a book that I sold around 12 years ago that I originally purchased from @Theagenes Here is the purchase from 2011... And ultimately the sale... This is the replacement that I purchased... And finally... having stumbled upon this incredible collection of pulps that appeared at my LCS almost 2 months ago. This may sound strange, but after coming to the conclusion that this may have been an original owner collection, I seriously 'fell in love' with them and was able to come away with this 1938 set of Weird Tales. And I'll just add in this incredible picture from 1935... this is how I got here, in a nutshell. I am leaving out one big detail, involving one particular title, but I'll get to that later.

Ok, I'll start with this... around 12 years ago I lightly got into pulps here on the boards and started a small collection which I eventually sold off with the exception of a couple of random Weird Tales. Well, within the past 5 months, the pulp bug has returned with a vengeance and has bitten me hard. Actually, so much so that comics kind of feel secondary to me now, which is so strange to write. So that being said, as I'm looking at more and more of these pulps, I've quickly come to the conclusion that you can not assign the same criteria in grading these as you would comics. What I mean is that a VG (4.0) is not in comics what it is in pulps. Am I correct in assuming that? And am I also correct in assuming that repairs and 'modifications' do not carry the same stigma in pulps as they do in comics?

So it seems that I've kind of written myself into a corner, so to speak. What I was referencing last night, or rather alluding to, was this thought I had regarding the state of DC and the DCEU. I was thrilled to hear that James Gunn revealed that there will be a Swamp Thing movie but there does seem to be a level of uneasiness with some fans regarding the future plans of Gunn's vision... at least that's what I'm seeing in parts. \\https://www.theverge.com/entertainment/2023/1/31/23579837/dc-studios-james-gunn-batman-superman-legacy-supergirl-the-authority-paradise-lost Now I was pretty pleased with the latest Flash trailer and to me, it actually looks really good. Of course that may be because of what we're all anxiously awaiting to see on film and that's Michael Keaton's return as Batman but the story-line looks intriguing to me at the very least. So it appears that DC is starting to build a solid foundation and I'm pretty excited to see that. So what's this Curse of the Bambino thing? Well, as I was about to write another entry in this build up that I'm getting to, I thought about those 86 years. If you take 1939 (oh, I don't know... just for some random reason) and add 86 years... well, you get 2025. Gunn listed the release date for his Superman reboot as being July of 2025 and yes, I know that the first appearance of Superman came in 1938. It's the following year that's the problem. So, could this be when the curse, as I'm calling it for now, lifts for DC? Of course that remains to be seen. But for now, I still need to find a satisfying way to sort of rewrite what I was intending on posting here next and it's proving to be a challenge. So, I'll get to the Crime that was Committed. After an announcement from our sponsor...

Good evening Pulp World. So many questions... A new adventure begins.

"Shots rang out - from the joint next door"...

Intermission.

2023... So what if the essence of "The Curse of the Bambino" wasn't confined to just baseball but was actually something more universal? Well... ... 1939 I'm sorry, what was that you were saying Bob? A Bat... what, you mean a Bat - Man? Sounds kind of interesting, tell me more.

The Curse of the Bambino... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curse_of_the_Bambino A prominent player (character) was sold from the Boston Red Sox to the New York Yankees. Consequently, according to the curse, the Red Sox sustained a championship drought that lasted 86 years. Yes, 86 years. What is 86 years anyways? I mean, c'mon... it's a lifetime. (Nope... Not going to link that video again... ) Damn. Ok, fine... it's too good not to share yet again, so I guess here we go.

I know I promised to get to the next episode here and I certainly left enough teasers but the past few weeks have kind of derailed my initial course of thought. I had to talk to my partner in crime this past week, albeit through text, to drop this idea I have regarding the subject matter of the future of this journal. We'll see... And so, before I continue on with this reveal, I had an epiphany this past week and now I'm starting to think that there is a lot more to this than a wandering thought, which I engage in on an almost hourly basis. Have you ever heard of the Curse of the Bambino? No? Fantastic!

Thank you @CGC Mike for another fun contest and congratulations to the winners! This has been very beneficial to me as it kind of shows my overall tendencies. Out of 20 books... I hit a bullseye on 4, over-graded 4 and under-graded 12.

Speaking of advertising... For just under $100, this 1936 RCA Victor T10 looks like a good deal.