Get Marwood & I

You just caught me Gary - going to be offline for a while after this. Duncan's 'distributed in the UK' doesn't mean a printed UKPV - he means a distributed cents copy. I could go on, but I wouldn't rely on his guide - admirable though much of it is, it's littered with inaccuracies and, in my view, he never makes the distinction between printed UKPVs and the UK distributed cents copies clear enough. Now, I'm off!

Since I started collecting this information I have found three definable / named UK distributor stamps: Thorpe & Porter L Miller (and A Miller) RV (persona not knowna) I've also found a lot of unbranded stamps with just prices, many of which are likely to be Thorpe's who, as Mr T pointed out, had a habit of forgetting their T&P in the late 1970's. To date, the US publishers I've found with enough branded stamps to indicate a formal distribution arrangement are: ACG (with just Thorpe & Porter stamps) Archie (both Thorpe & Porter and L Miller) Atlas (just Thorpe & Porter) Charlton (both Thorpe & Porter and L Miller) DC (just Thorpe & Porter) Dell (just Thorpe & Porter) Gilberton (just Thorpe & Porter) Harvey (just L Miller) IW / Super (just L Miller) MF Enterprises (just Thorpe & Porter) Marvel (mostly Thorpe & Porter with a handful of L Miller) In addition to those I've found two single examples as follows, both of which probably snuck in to the process in error rather than by way of any formal distribution arrangement: Gold Key - one T&P stamped book (the Thriller #2 shown previously in the thread) Headline / Prize - one T&P stamped book And there are multiple examples in evidence in my files of unbranded UK stamped copies of Mighty Comics Group which may indicate something formal, or possibly just one outlet. Whilst we don't know for sure what date any of the books actually arrived or went on sale in the UK, we can now evidence the date window for the existence of UK stamped US comics as being 1958 to 1979 by cover date, and there is enough anecdotal evidence to indicate that the books likely first arrived on UK shores in late 1959 / early 1960. For me, this 20 year period is easily the most rich, exciting, ground breaking and often madly illogical time in comics history. The early distribution years are littered with practices and nuances which just don't exist beyond the 1980's and certainly not in the bland, soulless current age. I've mentioned many times in my threads here on the CGC boards that Thorpe & Porter have always been assumed by the masses to be the 'sole distributor' of US comics in the UK. I hope I have done my bit to dispel that myth with my work on uncovering L Miller's role, both in respect of UKPVs (which no one knew existed) and also the distribution of non-reprint tiles (virtually every online source cites them as a reprint specialist only). I'm going to step away from the boards again for a while now due to other pressing matters, but I hope you guys reading have enjoyed everything I've posted here so far. Don't forget the Pence Palace summaries which, for the time being, will be crystallised until I return. I'm quite pleased with them to be honest - a wealth of information there - much of it 'new' - about all those little nuances that only nutters like us appreciate. Have fun boys and thanks for playing Be seeing you...

I don't remember seeing any Towers in my neck of the woods as a kid. Or Charltons for that matter. I know Charltons had limited regional distribution but I can't be sure if they were there and I just didn't pay enough attention.

I can't get in the garage to get to the lighter fuel - got the builders in - so we'll have to wait. In the meantime, a few more Dynamo pricing examples from the files:

Let's just say it's not Spidey's head

I like those theories. I'll get the lighter fuel out later and see if I can prise it off. I think I have others in the files with the under stamp visible too. Wish me luck

cgcmod1 doesn't count

Indeed. Being last issues though, production volumes were often low in most cases so maybe they extended the thought of 'this title don't sell in the US, let's cancel it' to 'so we won't bother with the last UKPV'. Let's face it, the distributors never displayed the slightest concern for ensuring we in the UK got the full run / consecutive issues did they? My other theory is that they put all the US titles on a dart board each month and....

In the case of my ASM #288 example though, why no standard Spidey head UPC on the Direct Edition as is the case on the #289 and almost all applicable issues?

Got ya, thanks Eric - here's a 2 shilling T&P'd one - no 10p as Mr T said (and it's another new style too, for the T&P grid - no bar dividing the price and T&P: That's mad. Love it

There's quite a few patterns that I haven't posted about in the 20p bracket actually Gary - suffice to say I have searched relentlessly for the missing issues over many years. That's why I nearly fell on the floor when the MSH #104 turned up at the fair. Take ROM #23, the only missing 20p issue. I've got a folder full of images of bulk lots from UK sellers where only #23 is cents, sitting among all 20p surrounding issues. Ditto Sgt Fury 167, Spider-Woman 39, Star Trek 15. And as for the last issues - is it any surprise that only RK #151 exists when Red Sonja #15, the next title alphabetically, doesn't? You can see what happened there can't you. Possibly!

Oh, you've ruined it now! Let us know if it's there - bound to be more copies squirrelled away

Tell a lie @Mr Thorpe, I had this saved in my stamp 'other stamp types' folder - August 1970:

While we wait, I wonder why some Direct Editions are missing their picture UPC boxes when their corresponding Newsstand copies have them? UPC box missing from Direct, present on Newsstand UPC box present on both

I picked this up on eBay UK of all places, for a pound: That doesn't happen often. Someone stuck a price sticker on it for the same amount as the UPC printed price - just to make sure

Thanks Una. Just family stuff - it will probably keep me away again soon for a while, so if I go missing again don't fret

In that lot, I also got these two: This one has a cool 9d stamp with no distributor attached - not one I've seen before: And this one is a cents copy with an LM 6d stamp that at December 1960 just predates the introduction of the LM UKPVs: I collect these examples to help support my theories as to what Charlton UKPVs exist, given their staggered arrival.

Whoo-hoo! Yes, that's a new one on me Theresa, well done. Funnily enough I got a copy of that book in a recent auction lot - I was hoping it would be stamped, but nay. I've added it to the outliers section:

Thanks Mr T! Don't add to it again will you, heh heh Oh, for sake! Cool isn't it. It doesn't have 'T&P' on it though so I can't include it. Only joking. I've only found it on September 1970 books so far, and only DC (no Marvels) 132 you mean? That was a 15c job Mr T: I'm glad you posted the dual stamp because it shows the lack of consistency around the time - DC 402 (August) has both 5p and 1/- stamps in evidence and the following September issue a dual and a 5p: It makes you wonder if this meant their were multiple locations. Why would a single stamping location have such a variance of stamps? Different people in the same place with different stamps? The usual lack of consistency which I love

Isn't it just Maud. Only two examples of the 20p book found to date and one of them is the printing plate!

There's got to be one, surely.

Some of my research strands feature in Jon McClure's market report again this year: https://rarecomics.wordpress.com/2020/09/01/jon-mcclures-overstreet-price-guide-50-full-market-report/#respond I remember my first guide as a kid and I still get a little kick out of seeing my name / work in it today, even in this small way. The guide is an institution (get your jokes in now) regardless of any failings. Part of our comic history. It's not my only brush with printed fame mind - someone from Sheffield cheekily nicked some of my old Dr Who artwork for their Comic Shop ad in an old copy of the UK Price Guide too: Fame, eh

Four of a possible eight 'Adventures of The X-Men / Adventures of Spider-Man' flipbooks have now surfaced: All are priced at AUS $3.20 and in each case so far: The primary X-Men covers have the barcode UPC and AUS price The secondary Spidey covers have a regular picture UPC where it is present (no UPC at all on #3) Here's an example of #7: No reason to believe the remaining four won't turn up at some point but I would imagine these flipbooks are scarcer than many other titles. We'll see