If so, September of 1969 was where your phobia began because it was in that month that Scooby-Doo first aired, bringing a sense of numbing dread and terror into our childhood lives. At least, it did once Scrappy-Doo showed up.
Also that month, the United States' first ATM was installed in Rockville Centre, New York. Famously, the first customer of such a machine in Britain was the vaguely sinister On The Buses star Reg Varney, in June 1967. Whether the American machine had an inaugural customer of equal acclaim isn't known.
It may have been the start of a new era in banking but, in music, it was the beginning of the end of an era. At a meeting between John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and Beatles manager Allen Klein, John Lennon announced his intention to quit the group.
However, it was also the month in which the band released their Abbey Road album which went on to be seen as a classic despite receiving mixed reviews at the time.
Cap finds himself trapped in the body of the Red Skull and stranded on an island populated by a bunch of ageing war criminals who want to kill the Red Skull.
And only turning an unemployed bird-fancier into a human fighting-machine, in the space of about ten minutes, can save him.
Even though I remember Death's Head very well, I can never remember anything much about the story. Was Karen Page kidnapped in it? Did the villain turn out to be her uncle or her father or something?
The Mole Man's plot to defeat humanity with his house may have been thwarted but now the FF have a bigger problem on their hands, as the Skrulls kidnap Benjy in their quest for the perfect gladiator.
Bruce Banner's talent for blundering into trouble continues to impress as no sooner has he found himself in a South American country than he has to take on Maximus, the evil Inhumans and their giant, mind-control robot.
I think this is the one in which a Life Model Decoy takes Tony Stark's place and our hero has to sneak back into his own factory by pretending to be a Tony Stark lookalike who's been hired by Midas to commit some act of espionage or other.
Along the way, he finds time to fall in love with Madame Masque.
Hooray! The Lizard's back and about to bite off more than he can chew when the Human Torch shows up to join in with the fun.
I'm assuming this is the one in which Thor catches up with Galactus, and the Big G tells him his somewhat underwhelming origin as a man who got exposed to radiation and promptly developed super-powers.
How on Earth did Jack and Stan think of such a ground-breaking concept?
Having said that, this is one of those tales where the story Jack's telling with his pictures is clearly not the one Stan's telling with his words. Jack's pictures seem to be showing the Watcher accidentally creating Galactus, whereas Stan's words claim he's merely observing the villain's creation.
I'm struggling to remember what happens in this one, other than that Sauron's in it.
Ultron's made himself indestructible and even the Avengers' assault on his secret base can't stop him.
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47 comments:
If you had posted the Avengers first, instead of last, Charlie would have thanked you for your devotion to the alphabet! Maybe next time...?
The heroes are important, but for me the villains need to be just as good. What a great collection of bad guys that month!
The Lizard, Ultron, Galactus, and virtually everybody are my favorites. I was lucky to get most of this post's featured books.
The rogue Stark LMD storyline was a great read. I believe it might've been in the next issue the imposter fought along side of Fury, Cap, and Yellowjacket. He was smug about the idea that they didn't know the difference. Later Tony fought him in the old,all-gold "water-heater" armor, which I love seeing in action. It was a great battle.
Charlie, oh my brother!
Maybe Steve layed out the entries this post in their position on purpose, knowing it'd put a "bee-in-your-bonnet"?
Much like, I suspected, you folks did last post, bringing up topics concerning Invaders/Fr*nk R*bb*ns that have been discussed ad nauseum.
Thank goodness for my meds.
Steve, I remember in elementary, and even high school, we had absolute respect for our janitors. We always addressed them with "Mr." or if they preferred by their first name.
There have been quite a few Horror movies based on janitors, but growing up in the 60's & 70's the ones I dealt with were alright.
The only thing that was bad was that sawdust chemical crap they used to toss on vomit/urine.
When I was switching channels (by hand) on a Saturday morning in '69, I accidently came across "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You". Though tame, it wasn't a bad show for a monster-kid who liked pop-music.
Was a little too old for Scrappy, and Scooby's hillbilly relative. I kinda dug the Scooby-Doo movies, for the most part.
They featured Batman, Jerry Reed, Don Knotts, and a few classic comedians. Those would've been better if they would've let Phyliss Diller & Jonathan Winters being their own material.
If anyone is interested in Scooby-Doo's Movies, the ones I mentioned are some of the best.
Stay away of the 3 Stooges and Laurel & Hardy features. All the guys were dead, and the voice actors don't cut it.
I don't think we ever saw our school janitor/caretaker. Whoever he or she was was truly an entity of total enigma.
Hold on, maybe Moe Howard actually was alive and did the Scooby Movie. I'm not completely sure.
Yes Steve, oh my brother, our elementary school janitors had quite the presence.
In 3rd grade I had a kid sitting just in front of me. Billy Williams, and he was amazing. We're all just listening in class then he just leans over a and blasts a 4 ft pavement pizza. Everyone freaked-out and I was genuinely mystified. How can such a little kid have so much stuff in him? In came the janitor with the stinky chemical sawdust.
Two months latter, during a test, a large puddle of piss started forming under Billy. He acted like nothing was wrong. I said, "Hey, Billy!" As I lifted my feet away from the encroaching puddle. He looked at me and said "What?!". Yet another evacuation of the classroom, with the janitor to the rescue with his stinky sawdust.
Man, Billy must've had issues. He's probably in politics now.
To the Scooby-fans & Stoogemaniacs, there were no members of the "real" 3 Stooge voicing the Scooby Movie.
Probably the same voice actors that did the horrible "3 Robotic Stooges" cartoon. What a travesty.
Who does dare to utter a name of him that doth cause a universe to tremble?
Galactus!
It was a pretty good comic. And Galactus' origin is about as reasonable as anybody else's I guess.
I loved the art. The image of a nascent Galactus, a bunch of energy pulsing in the crude shape of a man was rather striking to me.
The ol' Kirby Krackle.
Say, you ever notice how often in comics that aliens are bald?
I think it's because artists are lazy and just don't want to draw hair.
M.P.
Let's face it True Believers!
There were two exciting events at the House of Ideas that month!
First, "The Unleashing of Cpt (red and blue) Marvel" in #17 for all you losers who didn't like the Green and White uniform because you can only handle primary colors and probably have a slavish devotion to Pepsi Cola cause Coke is only red and white.
Second, The Marvel Plastic Pillows!!! I only found one on ebay and it was of Subby (the comics showed Thor and Spidey and I didn't know there was a subby by Gene the Dean. Asking price - $425. And it only holds air for a few days.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1968-Mass-Art-Marvel-Comics-Sub-Mariner-Plastic-Pillow-Gene-Colan-Marvelmania/223457817083?hash=item34071fb1fb:g:nLYAAOSwl9BWHcN6
M.P. - I see your point!
Though, Cpt Marvel was not bald, regardless of which uniform: the mind-bending green/white or the oh-so-boring blue/red.
And, the Skrulls were not bald.
And, Ego the Living Planet was not bald.
And the Stranger was not bald.
And, Mephisto was not bald.
And, Norin Radd was not originally bald.
I think your Oingo got Boingo'd somewhere buddy! Maybe trade that stuff in for some Wango Z Tango?
I think aliens actually look more "alien" without hair. Hair seems more primitive.
Unless it concerns a planet of Farrah Fawcett clones. Elon Musk, sell me a ticket!
Good luck explaining that pillow to the next chick you bring back to your pad.
She's gonna think you're a full-time nut!
Charlie, that first Captain Marvel uniform was funky as heck!
Just basic 50's style spaceman. Just a pop-gun, jetpack, and helmet with a fin on top.
They weren't even tryin'!
M.P.
MP!
I always wanted one of those plastic pillows and the Hulk Sweatshirt where he is pulling the wooden ducky on a string.
Anyhow, reflecting back on how randy the House of Ideas could be, it's truly a wonder they did not have plastic blow up dolls.
Who is going to pay $425 for a leaking plastic pillow? Would you want to meet him? Or would you rather keep your distance.
I mean, I've seem some freaky dudes at the Chicago Comic Cons for sure (perhaps the most unusual was in a dress which really didn't flatter him or his not-so-girlish figure) so I know said persons exist but still... $425???
Hokey Smokes, Bullwinkle! Here we go again. Red/blue vs green/white. While I prefer the red/blues, I still have a nostalgic fondness for the old uniform, clunky as it was. I wanted that t-shirt as much as you, Charlie, oh my brother!!
With the exception of The Avengers no word balloons on the covers and all the better for it! Deaths-head was a particularly striking villain visually though did not translate into a particularly memorable story, in my opinion.Similar to the Jester, potential never realised. The Daredevil cover reminds me of the drawing room scene in Hammers finest film, The Devil Rides out! Obviously just my opinion. Also musing that with a slew of cancellations at Marvel the Marvel checklist'seemed rather sparse! This would be the least amount of titles published(I think) since the early days of Marvel in late 50's, early 60's though the 70's would reverse that trend spectacularly. Loved this time and bought many of these issues off the shelf at the local newsagents. Final point being that in Belfast we used to get batches off comics(100-200)from 2-3 years before in pristine condition and would you believe that 5 or 6 copies of Silver Surfer #1 from 1968 came in and remained unsold as it was too expensive!!!! I kid you not!
Yeah, that T-shirt would be cool to have.
Why don't they just make more, for cryin' out loud!
There was this dude that worked in the same factory as me some years back.
I didn't know the guy, but he had this Justice League of America T-shirt with the art from this big treasury edition from the '70's (Remember them? They had incredible covers!
It had the classic Leaguers (Flash, Superman, etc.) running towards you. Drawn by Mike Grell, IIRC. Just beautiful. I had it mounted at one point.
Anyway, I wanted to knock that kid over the head and take his shirt.
But it probably wouldn't have fit me, 'cause he was a skinny little hippy dude and I am more ape-like.
M.P.
He had a green costume, he was drawn by Gene Colan... Marvel were obviously chasing after young Charlie's pocket money with the introduction of the Falcon this month.
Did they ever explain the island of exiles in Captain America, and why Sam Wilson happened to be there? That Face/Off malarkey between Cap and the Red Skull was one of the more ridiculous stories of the era, which is saying something given the competition.
Not only is the Avengers cover out of alphabetical sequence Steve, it has a UK price, which is not something I recall seeing in this feature before. What are you trying to say? What does it all mean?
-sean
What does it all mean indeed.
Charlie, doggone it, Norin Radd WAS bald. He was bald as a grape.
He didn't even have eyebrows!
And as far as Mar-vell goes, when he was wearin' that goofy helmet he might as well be bald, as far as Gene Colan was concerned, because hair need not be drawn.
Just that fin on top.
How many space guys had that funky helmet with the fin on top? Lessee, Buck Rogers, Adam Strange,...uh, well, I know there's others. Trust me.
M.P.
Sean, I included the one shilling Avengers cover because, upon seeing it, it struck me that, thanks to impending decimalisation, the days of the one shilling comic were nearing an end.
As it turns out, I was wrong. We had a couple of years to go before they disappeared completely.
"Impending decimalization"?
I stand in awe of you, Steve.
M.P.
What can I say about ASM this month? Well it's pretty well wall to wall lizard action and John Buscema seems to like drawing him with his mouth as wide open as possible. I can only see one panel with his mouth definitely shut and that's one where Spidey has kicked his head backwards under the jaw.
The Avengers cover looks to me like the best of what's quite an underwhelming set compared to recent months. From the descriptions, though, Iron Man is the one that I most like the sound of. Iron Man seems to be going through quite a camp AdamWestBatmansque run (with the Tuskateeth artwork only adding to that vibe) but it's a run that I remember fondly from when it was reprinted in Spider-Man's comic in the U.K.
I can't recall the name of the janitor/caretaker in my school but I do remember the story about him - apparently he'd been a university student who'd dropped out due to mental illness!
I absolutely loved Scooby Doo when I was around 4 or 5 (I still do). I thought Scooby Doo was really scary - I was too young to notice that the plot was the same every week :D
I was actually quite surprised to see that 1/- on the Avengers cover Steve. Usually old money-era imports have the UK price handstamped, so specially printed "pence covers" must have been a recent innovation at this point.
Fwiw M.P., I always thought green Mar-Vell was an obvious Adam Strange rip.
-sean
Fantastic Four follower, I expect those batches of old comics like Surfer #1 were unsold returns from the US. Apparently old comics were used as ballast for transatlantic shipping, in which case Belfast would seem to be the logical place for them for them to end up on sale. Liverpool too maybe?
-sean
Gents - 2 more important things!
1) Though the comics have the same month of Sept. 1969 in the upper left, they don't seem to have been released in the same months. Last nite I was rereading Avengers 68 and Cap 117. Cap 117 in the MM Checklst is one month earlier, dicussing ASM 76, Avengers 67, DD 55 and FF 90. Avengers 68 has ASM 77, Avengers 68, DD 56...
So what gives???
ALSO - and this IS important: Though you can go to ebay and pay $425 for a leaking plastic pillow of Subby, this was NOT promotoed in the comics, only Thor and Spidey!! I am wondering if this shyster has created bogus pillows and is selling them???
ALSO (bonus comment!) though Cap Marvel 16 is the first blue/red, the comics use the Green / White Marvel inside to promote the Merry Marvel Searching Society!!! He is on his knee blasting the sign-up coupon you'd cut out and mail in with your hard earned pfarthings!!!
You guys got something against the Calkin's Buck Rogers, Kubert's Adam Strange, and Colan's Mar-vell???
Seriously???
If you guys wake up dead one day, having smothered on a leaky plastic pillow that you could not resist buying for $425, it'll only be "justice served."
FF Follower and Sean! I guess you are from "Ireland" (I don't know if that means north or south in our conversation, regrets!)
But is there a chance you guys have like attics full of Marvels in old homes or book stores over there?
After hearing FF Fans comments about them being used for ballast and then sold for pfennings but still too expensive to buy, perhaps they are just sitting in basements or attics of stores?
M.P. Norin Radd's mom and girlfriend Shalla Balla had more hair than Charro and Farrah Fawcett combined.
Perhaps there are a few scenes pre-Surfer where he is bald. But obviously Marvel can't present us every image of him from birth to when he shaved his head. He had hair, man. Just get over it... Like the Stranger or Kree.
Now if you want to read something interesting, the hair on the head and the genitalia is genetically different. We weren't just one big ball of hair initially! I read up on it after I shave all mine due to scabies. It's growing back now but it's a lot easier to slide through the prison bars without it.
KD- yes, the Scooby Doo Movies were pretty fun. I liked, particularly, the episodes with the Addams Family and the Groovie Goolies. And yes, Sandy Duncan. Oh, and there seems to have been a 'thing' in the later 70's about small versions of popular characters. Scrappy Doo, Plastic baby, Fangpuss, I detested them all...
In September of 69 I was starting 4th. grade; we had janitors (fully respected, incidentally) but they don't stick to memory...
This months' covers are ok, but not spectacular. Although that FF cover with the ghostly Skrull is pretty cool; that story arc was too.
Charlie- if anyone over there comes across an attic or store warehouse full of old comics, perhaps we should arrange to go over and help out with the search...
Red - I'm with you! I've never been to jolly, bonny Ireland! Picking up silver age on the cheap would go a long way towards finding the time!
Charlie, I remember the Marvel University blog working out that half of each month's Marvel titles were published two weeks before the other half. Presumably, this would explain the disparity you discovered.
I can confirm Sean and Fantastic Four Follower's story about unsold American comics being used as ballast. It wasn't unusual to find noticeably water-damaged ones turning up in market stalls, as a result of having spent time in ship's hulls. This seemed to be especially common during that early 1970s period when Marvel's books suddenly increased in length for a few months.
Redartz, my childhood knowledge of the existence of The Harlem Globetrotters came entirely from their guest appearances in Scooby-Doo.
Colin, I remember watching Scooby-Doo for years before I realised it was a comedy.
Sean, I think the Exiles were there because the Red Skull sent them there, using the power of the Cosmic Cube.
I think Sam was there because they liked to go hunting, so he'd been renting them his falcon, until he'd realised they were evil.
One thing I just noticed. There seem to be a lot of Avengers covers in the #51 to #100 period where the villain doesn't appear on the cover. They still look good though, probably because of Goliath's size and the extra colour variety that the Black Panther's costume brings.
If people don't hear from me for. While, it's because those recaptcha puzzles are too hard. Unless I get one of those with nine mini-photos I'm stuffed.
Puzzles too hard? Thats what they all say dangermash. Or should that be... dangerROBOT?!?
-sean
Shalla Bal had hair, yes, Charlie. And Skrull chicks had hair, that's true. All alien chicks have hair.
But you said Ego had hair and he didn't. He had a beard, but there was no hair on his north pole.
But then, Ego-Prime had a lotta hair. But that's a whole different deal.
M.P.
I think your right about those Avengers covers, D.M.
But I don't recall many memorable villains from that period.
Maybe Ultron, but a lot of 'em were yoyo's and clowns like Pluto or the Masters of Evil.
Why put the Melter on a cover? That ain't gonna jump out of a spinner rack.
M.P.
M.P.... You know the saying "turn 'em upside down and they all look the same." It applies to living planets too!
Steve - I know I could count on your scholarship to solve the Marvel Checklist phenom!
Guys - Cap 117 tells us the Exiles place an ad for someone to do Falcon hunting b/c they were bored. And Sam Wilson "hopped the first free freighter" with his Falcon. He also had a lot of pigeons but left then in NY. The island seems to be a Caribbean one. It's not clear how the Exiles got there though presumably the C Cube. Sam Wilson took a freighter to reach the island; they should have got on it and left the island.
You also have to wonder how they place a newspaper ad?
What is most noteworthy of this issue, though, is Cap eventually realizing he is wearing a Red-skull mask! He removes it, though we never see his (RS's) actual face, and then spends some panels applying clay from the earth to disguise his face!
I'm not sure why Cap felt obliged to hide RS's true face with a bunch of clay? Was Johann Schmidt on a wanted poster on that island or something? I mean this is 1969 so I am assuming Marvel wack-a-doodles hadn't horribly disfigured it or something yet?
Lastly, did Modoc ever make any more of the Cosmic Cubes or was he "one and done?"
That's right. STEP 1: TAKE OFF SKULL MASK.
I think they didn't want anybody to know what the Red Skull actually looked like, so there's a mystery. Like with Doc Doom.
There was a very interesting mini-series some years back about a young Johann and his days as a street punk with the Brownshirts.
Hey, have you guys heard about this new Joker movie? It sounds very interesting.
Maybe they finally figured out how to make a good D.C. Comics movie, which they ain't done since The Dark Knight.
M.P.
Have you not seen Shazam M.P.? As superhero films go, it was (surprisingly) alright.
Can't say the "realism" of the Nolan Batflicks was an approach that worked for me, and with reviews of the Joker referencing Taxi Driver and King of Comedy - apparently De Niro even plays a Rupert Pupkin figure - it seems to be going in a similar direction...
But I'm not going to be one of those people who complain about films before they've even seen them (not even when it comes to the Eternals).
-sean
I'm a De Niro guy, Sean. He's the man.
That Shazam was good, huh? I always did like Mark Strong. He's good in everything he's in. You see Tinker tailor Soldier Spy? (the latest one) Man, they had a line-up of incredible actors in that one. Talk about an all-star-cast.
An Eternals movie now?
That don't sound good.
M.P.
That version of Tinker... managed to be more '70s than the one made in the 70s M.P.
Yeah, I like Mark Strong too - the first time I saw him was on tv in the BBC adptation of The Long Firm, which is well worth tracking down if you haven't already seen it.
(Not sure how I'd rate his performance in Green Lantern though...)
I know what you mean about the Eternals, as theres even more scope than usual for them to f*** it up, but you've got to at least be curious about the first film based on solo Kirby (and hope they do better than Steppenwolf and the Mother Boxes in JLA)
Angelina Jolie is Thena apparently...
-sean
I know a guy who could play Karkas…
M.P.
Unless Karkas is a girl now. I read that the feminazi SJWs at Marvel/Walt Disney have cast Salma Hayek as Ajak.
Its political correctness gone mad. Or something.
-sean
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