The Silver State Chronicles

Man of Steel & Man of Mirth

Yes, way back in 1968 Marvel Comics was setting new standards in comic books – dynamic characters, innovative stories, and fantastic art. Indeed, in many ways 1968 was the peak of the Marvel Age of Comics!

Yet down the street, DC was still stuck somewhere in the early 1950s. Standalone stories, stale characters, dull situations, and absurd contrivances. DC seemed pleased to appeal to 8 year olds and not look beyond that narrow vision. I can’t say it wasn’t successful – I believe DC had the edge in sales into the 1970s. The crew in charge just figured if it wasn’t broken, there was no need to fix it.

That brings us to this classic comic book cover – The Adventures of Jerry Lewis # 105! This classic comic features the long-awaited team up between Superman and ol’ Jerry!!!

Evidently, Roger C Carmel decided to wear some tight purple pants and a strange green shirt and hold up poor Jerry with a Tommy Gun! And somehow, he has surmised that Superman’s secret identity is indeed movie funnyman Jerry Lewis.

Lets just say Marvel’s bad guys were a lot more on the ball!

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Does Whatever A Spider Can

Marvel Comics was building a creative, dynamic universe in the early 60s, with innovations on many fronts. One of the most popular titles of that era was, of course, The Amazing Spider-Man. Under the talented hand of Steve Ditko and the creative force of Stan Lee, Spider-Man captured fans’ imagination and crafted an unusual super hero for that era.

But some changes were in the works. After just over a three year run, the art duties of Spider-Man would be transferred to the talented John Romita, Sr. Under his art direction, Spider-Man would truly come into his own and that particular vision of the hero remained the dominant image for decades.

The switch was to coincide with a big turning point in Spider-Man’s life. The Amazing Spider-Man #39 would be Romita’s first issue, and it would also culminate a story line involving The Green Goblin, Spider-Man’s arch foe. The cover tells it all – The Goblin is seemingly victorious, and has evidently discovered Spider-Man’s secret identity!

This is pretty heavy stuff for the mid 1960s! In any event, it’s one of the greatest comic stories of all time, and easily one of the greatest comic book covers of all time! Enjoy!

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Kryptonite Nevermore!

DC was making changes back in the late 60s and early 70s, a welcome development since they honestly hadn’t made many changes since the 1940s. Their comic line was old, stale, and boring, clearly geared to youngsters. Marvel Comics, on the other hand, had made great strides in the 60s and created a vibrant product that appealed to both children and adults.

One of DC’s changes was tweaking Superman a bit. No longer just a reporter for the Daily Planet, he did double duty as a news anchor on TV station WGBS His regular cast of characters was expanded a bit. Oh, and in Superman #233 they got rid of Kryptonite as the weakness of The Man of Steel.

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Batman vs Blockbuster

One of my alltime favorite comics book covers featuring The Batman swooping down on ol’ Blockbuster, who is doing a number smashing Batman’s logo. Pretty sure this is by the talented hand of Carmine Infantino, but if it isn’t please let me know.

Now that’s a pretty sharp cover! In the story inside, lower-tier Bat-Villain Blockbuster undergoes some therapy so that he would be filled with love, rather than hate & rage!

Initial results of the therapy are promising, but when Blockbuster catches a glimpse of some Batman related toys, he is thrown into a fit of uncontrollable rage, turning him truly ‘Bat-Mad!’ Don’t miss this issue!

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The Sky Rider of the Spaceways!

The original run of the Silver Surfer comic book (1968-1970) is a true classic. The first spin-off of The Fantastic Four comic, it featured one of the most original characters in the Marvel Universe.

The run boasted several great covers, but my personal favorite is the cover to Silver Surfer #4. It features SS and The Mighty Thor about to clash in battle. Indeed, this is one of my alltime favorite comic covers! They just don’t make them like this anymore!

Kudos to the giants of the Marvel Age of Comics to give us great stories like this one, as well as one of the greatest covers of all time! Special thanks to the talented John Buscema for drawing this memorable, fantastic cover!

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More Evil Giant Worms!

“The Thing” # 15, featuring a destructive giant worm, was so popular here that I searched and found another evil worm comic book cover!

This time, it’s Spellbound issue # 3, featuring an evil, giant worm (or maybe our heroes have shrunk, it’s hard to tell) menacing a happy couple! This book just begs to be read, of course – you can never get enough of this kind of stuff, can you?

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The Thing a la Steve Ditko

Legendary comic book artist Steve Ditko did some work for Charlton comics in the early 1950s. This was in the horror & crime era of comics, as superheroes took a backseat for a decade or so after WW2. Dig this awesome cover from The Thing # 15

Leave it to Steve Ditko to make a story involving a giant killer worm into something special & memorable! Give special attention to that rendering of the homicidal giant worm’s face! Harrowing!

Thank you, Steve Ditko, for so many great comic memories!

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No idea what this one is about

The Greatest Comic Covers collection returns with this gripping cover for Batman # 162, featuring ‘The Batman Creature.’

Evidently The Dark Knight has turned into some kind of monster, and has scaled a skyscraper, prompting the US Air Force to dispatch some jet fighters to bring him down. I suppose you really had to have been there!

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The Halloween Pranks of the Bizarro Supermen!

What’s Bizarro’s idea of a bunch of precocious tricks designed to confound a poor dog? Well, pick up this copy of ‘Adventure Comics # 294′ to find out!

I think this is a good time for us to remember ands honor the Bizarro code:

“We do opposite of all earthly things! Us hate beauty! Us love ugliness! Is big crime to make anything perfect on Bizarro World!”

Works for me! Amazing how this comic considers our cast of characters wearing masks of JFK, Marilyn Monroe, and of all people Jerry Lewis as hilariously funny tricks played on Krypto! Maybe you just had to be there!

Speacial Thanks to ‘Broadway’ Joe P. for supplying the cover for this issue! Excelsior!

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Lois Lane’s Strangest Adventure Ever!

Superman’s Girlfriend Lois Lane # 106 presents one of the strangest adventures ever for the star reporter!

After going to the Metropolis neighborhood ‘Little Africa’ to do a story, she grows frustrated by the cool reception from the locals. She encounters a militant ‘Black Power’ character straight out of 1970 and becomes unnerved by his comments disparaging “Whitey” as the “enemy.” (p. 4)

She somehow concocts a plan to transform herself as a black woman to get her story. I won’t spoil the ending, but I will admit this is one of my favorite comic book covers of all time! Mindblowing!

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