Fan asks for original art or scripts in FF #13

[Ferran Delgado]

Just wanted to share this letter from Fantastic Four #13 (cover date April, 1963) where a fan asks for original art and scripts, because...

"...I've noticed other companies give out free original art and story scripts for the best letters they receive".

 

 

[helionaut]

Mike was ahead of the curve. I seem to recall one or two other letters like that from childhood (in the 70s) and I definitely remember someone asked in an "Ask the Answer Man" column in the late 70s-early 80s about obtaining OA, and he said they might try writing the artist.

 

Actually, in New Teen Titans #50 (IIRC, where Donna Troy gets married) George Perez put in a panel where some guy was talking to Starfire, saying he bought her poster the day it came out. Turns out that guy was someone who had bought a lot of Perez OA back in the day. I wonder who/where that guy and his pages are today.

[Ferran Delgado]

I was aware that it was common practice to give away artwork to visitors, and offer it as prize in contests, and offer it as a gift in international business, and donate it to Universities, among other practices. But I was surprised to see that it was done so soon, by early 60s. And even more, that fans were already looking after it.

 

I don't know if there was a market of OA in that age, even small, but at least it looks like there was interest on it in fandom. Even for scripts!

 

Does anyone know which companies the fan meant? DC for sure, but any other? Does someone recall seeing this practice in letter columns of DC titles at early 60s?

 

 

[drdroom]

Yeah, our man Mike just might get credit for being the first to recognize the supremacy of Joe Sinnott. Where are you now, Mike Tuohey?

[Ferran Delgado]

Thanks for the info, Bill!

[clemso]

That kid had a keen eye and good taste.

[drewincanada]

Where are you now, Mike Tuohey?

 

He's here:

 

Mike Tuohey bio from Founders of Comic Fandom

[drdroom]

That's some nice googlin' there, Drew. What a charming story!

[glendgold]

Those old letters pages are great. There are tons of comments from Ronn Foss, et al. Also, if you have the ASM phonebook sized Omnibus reprints, you can see in the first ten issues or so, they had Ditko do spot illustrations for the letters pages that are quick but sweet. What's really interesting (to me) is a comment Stan makes around issue 9 or 10, at the end of the letters column, where he's obviously punchy and it's time to say what's coming in the next issue. He says something like "Poor Stan doesn't even know what's in the next issue because Steve hasn't finished explaining it to him." I'm paraphrasing, but it's telling that it worked that way so early, even way before he started crediting Ditko.