Obadiah Oldbuck vs. Superman

[ciorac]

From what I know superhero comics were big business back in the late 1930's and into the 1940's. After WWII intererest in them began to wane. This remained so until the Silver Age kicked it back off and they have ruled the roost ever since.

 

I see.....well if interest in Superheros lost some steam between roughly 1946 to 1956 - a 10 year period, was there another type of comic that was more in demand and more popular during that 10 year span, or was interest down for all genres and all books during that decade? ..... like a marketplace depression?

 

Romance, Western, Sci-Fi, Horror had taken the focus. You still had your Ducks and funny animals too.

[G.A.tor]

hello all...

I tell you, having knowledgable folks like Bill P and Bob B (among countless others) on these boards is a real pleasure to be part of this community ...

rick

[Dr. Love]

From what I know superhero comics were big business back in the late 1930's and into the 1940's. After WWII intererest in them began to wane. This remained so until the Silver Age kicked it back off and they have ruled the roost ever since.

 

I see.....well if interest in Superheros lost some steam between roughly 1946 to 1956 - a 10 year period, was there another type of comic that was more in demand and more popular during that 10 year span, or was interest down for all genres and all books during that decade? ..... like a marketplace depression?

 

 

In 1947, Jack Kirby and his partner, Joe Simon, already one of the most highly regarded production teams in the comics industry, introduced a totally new type of comic book in an effort to increase sales that were decreasing after the end of WWII. It was a book called My Date, an Archie-like book that focused on romance humor. It only lasted four issues, but it did well enough to convince Simon and Kirby to go ahead with the more serious Young Romance. They also created the genre to take advantage of a remarkable unheard of 50/50 profit sharing deal they pitched to Crestwood/Prize Comics. S & K had a whole studio of artists working for them and many were adept at approximating Kirby's pencil style or Simon's inking. They figured, and rightly so, that it was a romance title, not a superhero, mystery, horror, or war title, that would line their pockets with cash.

 

The groundbreaking Young Romance #1 hit the stands in September. The first issue was an enormous success, and it immediately caused waves in the industry. Martin Goodman, the publisher of Timely Comics (which would become Marvel Comics in the early '60s), dismissed Young Romance as "virtual pornography," attacking its emphasis on adult characters and situations.

 

Copying their own formula, S & K added Young Love, and combined sales exceeded 2 million copies per month, for years. Scores of imitators sprang up immediately, and within a year there were 125 separate romance titles in play. Martin Goodman too must have had a change of heart; within three years, Timely was churning out no less than 13 romance titles itself. In 1952, over 500 original romance comic titles were published in America, accounting for more than 25 percent of the entire comics market. Despite the competition, though, Young Romance ruled the sales charts, thanks in no small part to its writers and artists. Some of the industry's best honed their skills on the book's stories, which were surprisingly mature, considering the era in which they thrived.

 

The romance books' popularity, as well as their role as a breeding ground for a new generation of comic artists, cannot be forgotten. It's fair to say, in fact, that when the comic industry imploded in the early 1950s, romance books were just about the only ones standing alongside Superman and Batman to keep the industry afloat. If it weren't for their profitability, it's unlikely that comic companies would have stayed around long enough to create a second age of superheroes.

[bluechip]

I don't know if anyone's noticed but the Superman movie has managed to hold up well in its later stages of release -- making more money per day and week than similar films have after being out for as long. It's even finally beating Pirates on a daily basis. And doing better than Batman, X-mn or others did after being out a hundred plus days. And it's beaten Batman on the worldwide numbers. That said, it still hover just under 200 million, which is the magic number (admittedly, the fallback number) it needs to be considered successful enough to merit a sequel. So, if you want to support the movie, now's the time to go see it again. If only as investment in the public perception that lends additional value to your comics.

[action1kid]

DVD is out OCT 24!

[bluechip]

Oops. Movie is barely under 200Mil now and by the end of the week would have been only a few days away from that Mark. But I can't imagine them keeping it in theaters while it's on DVD. So I guess it will live with the stigma of making just a hair under the 200 mark.

[bluechip]

Wait!! I know a 10-24 dvd release sounded early but took your word for it. Then a quick check revealed that you, like Rick Blaine, have been misinformed. The DVD release is 11-28-06.

 

Still time for the movie to avoid coming in under 200 million, which would be the superhero film equivalent of being a PLOD.

[action1kid]

Saturday night Matenee had a mock up of the dvd in the store with a release date on it for oct 24..thats what I saw

[Aman619]

2 more weeks and itll crack 200 million.

[showcase4]

From what I know superhero comics were big business back in the late 1930's and into the 1940's. After WWII intererest in them began to wane. This remained so until the Silver Age kicked it back off and they have ruled the roost ever since.

 

I see.....well if interest in Superheros lost some steam between roughly 1946 to 1956 - a 10 year period, was there another type of comic that was more in demand and more popular during that 10 year span, or was interest down for all genres and all books during that decade? ..... like a marketplace depression?

 

 

In 1947, Jack Kirby and his partner, Joe Simon, already one of the most highly regarded production teams in the comics industry, introduced a totally new type of comic book in an effort to increase sales that were decreasing after the end of WWII. It was a book called My Date, an Archie-like book that focused on romance humor. It only lasted four issues, but it did well enough to convince Simon and Kirby to go ahead with the more serious Young Romance. They also created the genre to take advantage of a remarkable unheard of 50/50 profit sharing deal they pitched to Crestwood/Prize Comics. S & K had a whole studio of artists working for them and many were adept at approximating Kirby's pencil style or Simon's inking. They figured, and rightly so, that it was a romance title, not a superhero, mystery, horror, or war title, that would line their pockets with cash.

 

The groundbreaking Young Romance #1 hit the stands in September. The first issue was an enormous success, and it immediately caused waves in the industry. Martin Goodman, the publisher of Timely Comics (which would become Marvel Comics in the early '60s), dismissed Young Romance as "virtual pornography," attacking its emphasis on adult characters and situations.

 

Copying their own formula, S & K added Young Love, and combined sales exceeded 2 million copies per month, for years. Scores of imitators sprang up immediately, and within a year there were 125 separate romance titles in play. Martin Goodman too must have had a change of heart; within three years, Timely was churning out no less than 13 romance titles itself. In 1952, over 500 original romance comic titles were published in America, accounting for more than 25 percent of the entire comics market. Despite the competition, though, Young Romance ruled the sales charts, thanks in no small part to its writers and artists. Some of the industry's best honed their skills on the book's stories, which were surprisingly mature, considering the era in which they thrived.

 

The romance books' popularity, as well as their role as a breeding ground for a new generation of comic artists, cannot be forgotten. It's fair to say, in fact, that when the comic industry imploded in the early 1950s, romance books were just about the only ones standing alongside Superman and Batman to keep the industry afloat. If it weren't for their profitability, it's unlikely that comic companies would have stayed around long enough to create a second age of superheroes.

 

Dr.Love,

this is one heck of an impressive summary. I see you have only posted a few times....welcome to the boards! Would you care to share some of your comics background with us?

 

dealer / collector

years in the hobby

favorite books

present collecting interests

....that sorta' stuff

 

As for what you have summized here, it is very hard for me to imagine that Romance books would or could ever be the dominant force in the hobby, even if for a relatively short period of time( I've been in since 1992 ). Since day 1 for me, Superheros have been the meat and potatoes of the industry, and I see no present threat that could or would change that......but people probably said that before WWII also

[BLBcomics-migration]

As for what you have summarized here, it is very hard for me to imagine that Romance books would or could ever be the dominant force in the hobby, even if for a relatively short period of time( I've been in since 1992 ). Since day 1 for me, Superheros have been the meat and potatoes of the industry, and I see no present threat that could or would change that......but people probably said that before WWII also

 

Yo Steve

 

Back in the day, before the comics code, when 95% of all boys and 90% of all girls read comic books, according to many many stats i have compiled from studies of customer bases back then, romance was a HUGE genre, cuz females were the readers for them.

 

And Young Love and Young Romance, DC's two stalwarts in the field once acquired from Prize/Crestwood, lasted until 1977 and 1975 respectively. DC's other romance titles like Falling In Love, Secret Hearts, Heart Throbs (carried over from Quality Comics along with Blackhawk and GI Combat in 1956), all lasted into the early 1970s as well

 

Girls were reading them - and females were not reading super heroes until the Byrne Xmen started changing those reading patterns in the late 70s

 

Romance and funny animal comics were the "super" dominant forces in comic books at times, way more than super heroes ever were except for the occasional blip in the space time continuum. Sacrilege but, alas, true.

[showcase4]

Romance and funny animal comics were the "super" dominant forces in comic books at times, way more than super heroes ever were except for the occasional blip in the space time continuum.

 

dangerous words on these Boards, but if it is true, then you should escape with only a few scratches and bruises

[BLBcomics-migration]

The truth is what it is, the facts speak for themselves, we have been round & round on this thread "debating" other factoid truths and no matter how much people with out proper comics education might want certain things to be otherwise, i am not afraid, for i am.......Captain Teflon

[mica]

Romance and funny animal comics were the "super" dominant forces in comic books at times, way more than super heroes ever were except for the occasional blip in the space time continuum.

 

dangerous words on these Boards, but if it is true, then you should escape with only a few scratches and bruises

I think it's very accurate.

Steve I'm surprised you don't seem too familiar with this time frame.

 

If I sound incredulous it's because you've bypassed this era and gone out in what many consider left field (Obadiah) with an extensive budget. Yet in this era which bridges the gap between Gold and Silver you're

Is it because this era is teeming with Daisy ads which you mock?

Which I love.

[showcase4]

Romance and funny animal comics were the "super" dominant forces in comic books at times, way more than super heroes ever were except for the occasional blip in the space time continuum.

 

dangerous words on these Boards, but if it is true, then you should escape with only a few scratches and bruises

I think it's very accurate.

Steve I'm surprised you don't seem too familiar with this time frame.

 

If I sound incredulous it's because you've bypassed this era and gone out in what many consider left field (Obadiah) with an extensive budget. Yet in this era which bridges the gap between Gold and Silver you're

Is it because this era is teeming with Daisy ads which you mock?

Which I love.

 

Actually Mica I LOVE The Atom Age, and think it produced some really great books in its short 10 year time frame. My comments above to Bob Beerbohm were due to the fact that whenever a genre other than Superheros is held in high regard here in the Gold section of the Boards, you seem to get attacked by an angry mob

 

I knew Romance books were popular during this era, but never really thought about how dominant until now, as it is coming up in this thread ( probably because I don't collect them, and have tuned them out---same with Westerns and Classics Illustrated ).

 

I have always known the Atom Age for it's great books like All Winners #19, Eerie #1 ( the ugliest cover ever made IMO) , Adventures into the Unknown #1, Archie Annual #1, Strange Tales #1 ( one of my all time favorites...virtually non-existent in high grade), JIM #1, Brave and the Bold #1, and another all-time favorite of mine- Supes Pal Jimmy Olsen #1.(also an impossible to find in high grade, scarce and great book!) In fact, I am still to this day looking for high grade copies of Detective #225 and Young Men #24 .Notice how I did not mention a single Romance title...it is called "selective perception".........just focusing on what's important to you, and you miss seeing the bigger world around you. So don't be too suprised at the appearance of a missing decade of knowledge from my memory banks......it is just that, an appearance. I just don't do Romance ( the comics, that is )

 

As for Daisy ads and Obadiah Oldbuck:

I LOVE back covers with Daisy Ads...I just use that as an example of what the Vic/Plat books lack.

Obadiah Oldbuck- you may say "out in left field", I say "sleeping giant" ...once again, selective perception at work!

[BLBcomics-migration]

Daisy ads, Mica?

 

Howze about them there Charlie Atlas adverts?

 

There is no limb to go out on regarding comic books from the 1800s, and there are a lot of them, Obadiah being just the beginning of the comic book industry in America. I have seen no one to date in this thread dissect intelligently the Victorian and/or Platinum era history articles I compile for the Overstreet.

 

Moving 100 years into the future from when the American comic book industry cranked up, the spandex hero "gap" between the end of the 1940s and the late 1950s is one of intense genre proliferation and the super hero played such a minor role in comic book sales & circulation as to be laughable at best there was any registerable influence.

[mica]

Actually Mica I LOVE The Atom Age, and think it produced some really great books in its short 10 year time frame.

My comments above to Bob Beerbohm were due to the fact that whenever a genre other than Superheros is held in high regard here in the Gold section of the Boards, you seem to get attacked by an angry mob

Ah I see. I'm guessing that if you take away this Obadiah thread and subject that the angry mob would not be so noticeable. For example the Ducks thread is very popular.

The Pre-Code Horror thread is also popular, not too mention good girl art and Ant-Communist comics are well received as well.

Perhaps you are judging the resistance to Obadiah as your barometer of measuring the Golden Age crowd as being SUPERPOWERS-ONLY..

 

I knew Romance books were popular during this era, but never really thought about how dominant until now, as it is coming up in this thread ( probably because I don't collect them, and have tuned them out

Give us time, I'll see if I can't dig out some 50's romance...it is true that a lot of guys stay in the closet regarding liking these books

---same with Westerns and Classics Illustrated ).

Required Reading

 

Obadiah Oldbuck- you may say "out in left field", I say "sleeping giant" ...once again, selective perception at work!

This wasn't a slam at Obadiah just meant that you've picked a corner of the whole community to check out similar to a suburb while the Gold-through-Silver is downtown main street. and more well known.

[Scrooge]

I knew Romance books were popular during this era, but never really thought about how dominant until now, as it is coming up in this thread ( probably because I don't collect them, and have tuned them out

Give us time, I'll see if I can't dig out some 50's romance...it is true that a lot of guys stay in the closet regarding liking these books

 

I'll come out of that closet.

[BLBcomics-migration]

i have been out of the closet re any decent genre for most of my life now - if it is good stuff, i will read and enjoy it

[ciorac]

Romance and funny animal comics were the "super" dominant forces in comic books at times, way more than super heroes ever were except for the occasional blip in the space time continuum.

 

dangerous words on these Boards, but if it is true, then you should escape with only a few scratches and bruises

 

What was the blip Bob? 1938 - 1949? 1962 to present? I think five decades of dominance qualify as slightly more than a "blip".... don't you?