HistoryBuffalo

Hi all,

This technically falls under the guise of the Golden Age section but I feel this story important enough to stick in Comics General so that more individuals can read it... hope I'm not breaking any rules by doing this.

I recently acquired a lot of four Gum Inc. war trading cards from 1942. The highlight of the group is card #129 titled "Negro Swimmer Tows Survivors"... Today the card would carry a different title but back then the world was a different place and unfortunately an act of bravery must also carry the notation of race. After further research I discovered a comic that was also published around the same time and wanted to share it here.

The comic tells of the heroic actions of Petty Officer Charles Jackson French. French was serving on board the U.S.S. Gregory during the Guadalcanal campaignin 1942. On the night of September 4-5, the U.S.S. Gregory was sunk during engagement with Japanese forces and as she slipped beneath the waves much of her surviving crew, many of whom were wounded, climbed into a life raft. The waters they were located in were shark infested and in sight of land. The land however was hostile and the raft was drifting towards it. This is when French decided to strip off his clothing and have his fellow crew tie a rope around his waist and to the raft. He lept into the water and began to swim, towing the raft out of harms way. French would end up swimming through the night for between 6-8 hours pulling his men until they were sighted and picked up by an American vessel.

After the war many, including his crew, believed that French was deserving of a much higher honor than the simple letter of commendation that he received. It is clear that the longstanding racism within America denied him further honors and recognition. When news of his heroics broke in the states and around the world he was unidentified, only known as "French" he was then immortalized first in the 1942 Gum Inc. card set and then in a newspaper comic strip. Following this he was identified and went on war bond tours through the United States and was honored in his hometown of Foreman, Arkansas. He sadly passed away at the young age of 37 in 1957 inpart due to alcoholism. It seems he was swept into the pages of history. That is until late last month when his story was rediscovered (originally unearthed in the early 2000's in part due to card #129) and shared on a broader scale through the likes of social media. It was at this time that I like many others found out about Charles Jackson French.

The purpose of my post here is to share what is an interesting comic, yes, but also to continue to share the story and the legacy of Charles Jackson French. As a student earning his degree in history and who has an interest in the Second World War as well as the modern Civil Rights Movement of the 50s and 60s I am surprised that his story had flown undetected under even my inquisitive radar and I figure by sharing this here it could help introduce him to even more people and continue in helping tell his story and see to it that he might get the recognition he deserves.

Here is a link to a more detailed telling of French's story: https://ishof.org/assets/charles-jac...ch_article.pdf

Jake

Quick photo update. The badge arrived safe and sound as did the display box I ordered. It looks awesome!

Hi all,

I'm sure as many of you are aware from my many posts that I have been on the hunt for a wartime GA Captain America issue as well as the Sentinels of Liberty badges produced for his fan club between 1941 and 1942. This has been a search going on it's tenth year now. Growing up I was never truly into comics. I had a few Superman and Batman ones and loved the Sam Rami Spiderman films but outside of that my interests laid elsewhere. That all changed in 2008 with the release of Iron Man.

When the movie came out, I went and saw it with my Dad and Brother and this would go on to become a tradition upon the release of any future MCU movie. One film I was particularly excited for was Captain America The First Avenger. Growing up I always loved history and still do to this day (I am pursuing my bachelor's degree in the subject as I enter my senior year of college this fall) and one historical interest has always been the Second World War. So you can bet that when I saw Captain America would be getting a stand alone film set during that time, I was geeked! I can remember going to see the movie like it was yesterday and I remember the awe I felt as the lights came on when the credits finished rolling, excited for the future of Cap's story! Almost immediately upon returning home, I hopped on the computer and began to look into Cap's comic history and origin. I was excited to find that his comics actually had their roots during the war as well and having just discovered eBay around this time, I logged on using my Dad's account and searched for issues. I didn't have to look very far as the market was completely saturated with golden age and key issues. I was shocked by the high prices but made an attempt at bidding on some coverless issues that unbeknownst to me at the time were postwar circa 1948. It didn't matter as prices shot way past my max bids. I continued to search for a few weeks and then seeing that I wouldn't be able to afford any of these, I tabled the idea. During my search for different issues, I also became aware of the "Sentinels of Liberty" club and the badges that were sent out to members during the war. I think at the time of the film's release, many of the badges were selling for exorbitant prices and often more than many lower grade GA issues. So being unable to afford a coverless issue, I didn't even consider the badge as it would have been next to impossible at that time. Over the years I would pop back on eBay and search but the prices would rise with each year and I would seemingly find my self looking at the wrong time (i.e. at the release of yet another movie.)

Fast forward to earlier this year. I had some time off from school and remote learning, as we had a few snow days and a wellness week. I decided to use that time extremely wisely and stay in bed for most of it, binge-watching the MCU films on Disney+. After I wrapped with Endgame, I thought back to what my favorite moments were watching the movies the first time around nearly a decade earlier. I remembered the excitement I felt seeing "The First Avenger." So for old times sake I started looking for a GA Cap issue again. Being a little older now with just bit more money, I thought maybe, just maybe, I had a shot. I had just taken advantage of the crazy sports card market as well and sold a few baseball and football cards for a decent chunk of money to fund my ambitions. However, as I began to search for an issue I was bummed to find that the craziness of the sports card market had translated into other areas of collecting including comics. I decided to try different avenues, watching eBay lots and reaching out to fellow collectors on here, etc. I found a few options but nothing that made me want to jump at it on first sight. That's when upon reading archived threads on here that I remembered the existence of the Sentinel of Liberty badges.

I began to scour the web looking for examples but could only find the prices and results for concluded auctions. The prices again made me realize that if I were to fulfill my goal, I'd most likely have to pony up! I eventually tracked down a badge in extremely poor condition on eBay with a starting bid of $99, I was hoping it would hover around that price so that I could make a play for it... it ended up selling for $305 and I passed up on it. All the while I began to regret doing so. Having only seen a handful of examples of the badge throughout the years and believing that they would only continue to get harder to find and more expensive, especially in this current market, I doubled down and really began to search!

A few nights ago, I was looking more into the history side of the badge and reading up, trying to find information regarding production dates when I stumbled upon some recently uploaded photos off an example of the badge on google images. I followed the link which took me to the online storefront of a small comic shop in Maine. Sure enough the photos were part of a current listing for the badge that had only been for sale for three days. I deliberated about it and consulted a few individuals before I and decided to go ahead and make the purchase. I got it for a fair price at $200 although some may argue that I slightly overpaid. The condition is rough at first glance but still has some of its luster and still has charm. I'm thrilled to have found a badge that would have sent 12 year old me over the moon all those years ago!

The badge is so incredible to me because it is at the very begining of everything... from the very creation of Cap in 1940 through the various issues and runs by different artists, video games, movies and cultural and societal impact on the present day 80 years later. It's really quite amazing. One of the reasons I did not initially bid on other examples I saw is because of the wear and age that they (like my badge) exhibits but the more I think about that aspect, the more I realize that this badge was loved and used, it wasn't stuffed in a box and forgotten. I believe that some young person was galvanized by Cap to contribute to the war effort in their own way and probably was inspired to live up to the ideals presented in the comics. You can't see that kind of history on a shiny, new badge. After all it has lived through a world war and is going on eight decades now. Another thing I enjoy is that is a connection to the early days of the character and its creators. I have heard and read a few times that the badge was designed by Joe Simon himself, so to have a piece going al the way back to the Simon and Kirby period and 1941 is really quite special.

I want to thank everyone who helped me in my search! Whether it was sharing examples of the badge, information or pointing me in the right direction with leads, it is all very much appreciated. Once the badge is in hand I will post some better pictures but for now, here's my comic grail!

Jake