What Period Does GA Begin and End For You For Collecting... 2 2

[Krydel4]

I know the "official" time period is 1938-1956. But for me personally, I don't consider anything past 1949 as being GA. The 1950 for me is the demarcation point. My buddy who also collects GA considers basically AC1 to the end of WW2 as the GA and doesn't collect outside that period. I can see his point as these 2 comics were only published 5 years apart but could be a million given how different just the cover art style. The AC is never going to be mistaken for a modern book but the SA wouldn't look out of place in the Bronze age. Just from the covers alone. Do any of you have personal starting/cutoff points for collecting GA that are different from the "official" time period?

Edited October 29, 2023 by Krydel4
Clarity

[circumstances]

New Fun in 1935 (I don't consider pre-hero DC Platinum) to generally All Star #57 in early 1950.

 

Silver Age starts some 5 or 6 years later.

[Vintage_Paper]

1933-Sept 1945

[Tri-Color Brian]

My personal scale...

1937-1945-GA

1946-1955 (or code sticker on cover)-Atom Age

1955 (code sticker) -1969-SA

 

[bronze johnny]

On 10/29/2023 at 5:41 PM, Krydel4 said:

I know the "official" time period is 1938-1956. But for me personally, I don't consider anything past 1949 as being GA. The 1950 for me is the demarcation point. My buddy who also collects GA considers basically AC1 to the end of WW2 as the GA and doesn't collect outside that period. I can see his point as these 2 comics were only published 5 years apart but could be a million given how different just the cover art style. The AC is never going to be mistaken for a modern book but the SA wouldn't look out of place in the Bronze age. Just from the covers alone. Do any of you have personal starting/cutoff points for collecting GA that are different from the "official" time period?

Not sure where you get “official” period of GA is 1938 - 1956? The GA was pretty much over with the end of WW2. Superheroes tried to fight crime after the defeating the Axis Powers, but the crime comics along with romance and horror genres, caught the public’s attention given the postwar fears of atomic war and communism. The best examples of this change are first seen in comics like Crime Does Not Pay, Young Romance, and then of course EC Comics. DC Comics did keep the Superman (Adventure and Superboy) and Batman “family books” along with Wonder Woman through the 1950s, which was significant given that a part of the DC Silver Age success was attributed to a continuity of these GA characters (see BB 28 and the Justice League of America). Still, comic books published by EC Comics were in no way similar to what was hit the newsstands during the war years that preceded. So it’s clear that the period following the demise of the superhero (see Atlas and then that publisher’s failed attempt to bring back the Submariner, Captain America, and the Human Torch during the mid-50s) was a different era and should be called the Atomic Age. Period. 

[fifties]

I thought the GA ended in the first quarter of 1955, succeeded by the code approved SA, which were entirely different from the adult directed pre-code fare.  Their beginning of course would have been with Action Comics #1.

[Krydel4]

On 10/29/2023 at 7:41 PM, bronze johnny said:

Not sure where you get “official” period of GA is 1938 - 1956? The GA was pretty much over with the end of WW2. Superheroes tried to fight crime after the defeating the Axis Powers, but the crime comics along with romance and horror genres, caught the public’s attention given the postwar fears of atomic war and communism. The best examples of this change are first seen in comics like Crime Does Not Pay, Young Romance, and then of course EC Comics. DC Comics did keep the Superman (Adventure and Superboy) and Batman “family books” along with Wonder Woman through the 1950s, which was significant given that a part of the DC Silver Age success was attributed to a continuity of these GA characters (see BB 28 and the Justice League of America). Still, comic books published by EC Comics were in no way similar to what was hit the newsstands during the war years that preceded. So it’s clear that the period following the demise of the superhero (see Atlas and then that publisher’s failed attempt to bring back the Submariner, Captain America, and the Human Torch during the mid-50s) was a different era and should be called the Atomic Age. Period. 

Overstreet, CGC, CBG, to name a few have used that time frame to mark when the Golden Age began and ended ie. AC1 to SC4. I personally think the GA was from AC1 to the end of the forties. But everyone has a different opinion when it comes to their own collecting tastes/preferences which is why I asked my original question. If you think it's to the end of 1945, great you have the same opinion as my friend I mentioned, you don't need to defend it. It's a preference. 👍

Edited October 30, 2023 by Krydel4
Clarity

[action1kid]

On 10/29/2023 at 5:41 PM, Krydel4 said:

I know the "official" time period is 1938-1956. But for me personally, I don't consider anything past 1949 as being GA. The 1950 for me is the demarcation point. My buddy who also collects GA considers basically AC1 to the end of WW2 as the GA and doesn't collect outside that period. I can see his point as these 2 comics were only published 5 years apart but could be a million given how different just the cover art style. The AC is never going to be mistaken for a modern book but the SA wouldn't look out of place in the Bronze age. Just from the covers alone. Do any of you have personal starting/cutoff points for collecting GA that are different from the "official" time period?

For me personally, the Golden age starts with Detective comics # 1 . 

[Telegan]

For those of you who make the atomic age division, what is the reasoning in terms of comic books for the division.  Obviously, the dropping of the bombs and "nookyuler", but what about it in comics?  Is it because you started seeing "atomic things" in them or was there something about the comics themselves other than the content?  Just trying to learn ...

[jimjum12]

For me, GA ends when the 52 pagers go the way of the dodo. Like any other "era", there will be early birds and then the rest of the herd, when everyone is on board. E.C.s are definitely Atomic Age, as are almost all of the Atlas efforts. As for SA, I'll go with Showcase #1 as the dawn, but the true SA to me begins when the publishers begin publishing the new titles, around 1958 or so. I never really saw the importance of having an exact book for the beginning ... too much over thinking. If it's bothering us that much. maybe a cold shower is in order  GOD BLESS ... 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus)

[Paul © ® ⚽️💙™]

-I know the GA is an expansive period, but for me being a strictly PCH bod, 1950-55 are the years that encapsulate what I love about it.

With particular emphasis on the years 1953 and 1954 as I believe the best PCH was produced during these two years.

Just my personal preference and opinion of course.

[Professor K]

This is a good question and it's curious to see how many different points of view there are. 

I never understood the Showcase 4 reasoning. Ok maybe that marks the beginning of a resurgence of superheroes but I don't see how that would change the "Age". It's all tough to define because from 1933 on it's been an evolutionary process. Hard to say where exactly something began and ended and a lot of it overlapped each other if that makes sense. 

If I had to choose a definitive beginning and end to the Golden Age I would go with the day Funnies on Parade came out to the day the CCA was created. But in that time period there are a lot of "Sub-Era's" that overlapped each other for a time. 

[Telegan]

I've never really cared that much about defining the start and end of an age, but I've always gone with the belief that Action Comics #1 defined a beginning of a massive era in terms of popularity.  Did it define the beginning of "comic books", no, but let's face it Superman is (one of) the backbones of the entire industry, and he's still pretty popular today.  As for when it ended, I'm more convinced by those who say it was around the time when the CCA came about and stamped their approvals on the covers of magazines.  Yes, there was no absolute date when that happened since the CCA stamp gradually made its way around to various comics, but ...

In all honesty, I don't care much about comic book eras, but I do find it interesting that after being born in the 70s, my loyalty at the moment lies 90% within pre-CCA comics.  There are very few comics post-CCA I look at their cover and say "oh wow, that's neat" or say "I gotta have that someday!" like those before. Well, ok, I'll probably tick EC purists off and say I really wanted that Impact #3 that I finally got a long while back.  So maybe I should change my belief above and just say that, to me, my "Golden Age" is everything pre-CCA (and Impact #3 ... ).

Edited October 31, 2023 by Telegan

[Robot Man]

On 10/29/2023 at 7:01 PM, Tri-ColorBrian said:

My personal scale...

1937-1945-GA

1946-1955 (or code sticker on cover)-Atom Age

1955 (code sticker) -1969-SA

 

Ah, the age old question…

But I would concur with Brian other than starting the GA in 1938 with Superman.

I could also give the GA nod to anything pre-code for the most part.

Old school I guess. But, as a kid, most any “10 center” was considered GA to the kids in my neighborhood and highly prized. 

[Robot Man]

Annother way of looking at is the era when you first started reading comics is your own personal “Golden Age”. 

[Marty Mann]

The GOLDEN AGE began with me when I purchased my fist comic book off the newsstand in 1942...ALL-WINNERS #4...

and ended in 1954 with the purchase of WEIRD SCIENCE-FANTASY #26.

 

 

 

[ThothAmon]

Por moi. 
 

[fifties]

On 10/31/2023 at 11:12 AM, Marty Mann said:

The GOLDEN AGE began with me when I purchased my fist comic book off the newsstand in 1942...ALL-WINNERS #4...

and ended in 1954 with the purchase of WEIRD SCIENCE-FANTASY #26.

 

 

 

 

 

I'm a little behind ya, bro, having bought my first about 1952 or so, and woulda been a Dell funny animal book, long since gone.  I did however keep the two 3D's I bought in the fall of '53 for a quarter each.

[Tri-Color Brian]

Since my estimate of GA dates got the most "likes" (6) of any other guesses, I must be correct...

My personal scale...

1937-1945-GA

1946-1955 (or code sticker on cover)-Atom Age

 

Edited November 7, 2023 by Tri-ColorBrian

[Robot Man]

On 10/31/2023 at 1:08 PM, Tri-ColorBrian said:

Since my estimate of GA dates got the most "likes" (3) of any other guesses, I must be correct...

My personal scale...

1937-1945-GA

1946-1955 (or code sticker on cover)-Atom Age