[JVJ]

There were no index cards for Rusty or Fightin' Marines.  In fact the only other index cards I have this time are for the various Dell war titles.  War Comics, War Stories, & War Heroes.

I KNEW I was forgetting something that day, Jon. Now I know what it was. Sorry about that. If anyone wants to know the art info on those books, ask and I'll try to dig out the card and perhaps recreate it as a comment to the download file.

Peace, Jim (|:{> (so howcum EVERYBODY seems to jump on the "Peace" bandwagon in December? It's a year-long, forever wish, isn't it?)

[Yoc]

Hi Jim,
I'm curious about Fightin' Marines #11 artists.  Please feel free to comment here or in the comment section of the download.

-Yoc

[JVJ]

Going from my notes, Yoc,
Cover by Gene Colan
Yan River by Mort Drucker
Curious Facts... Drucker
Devil's Pocket is Gene Colan (& ?)?
Marine Oddities - Drucker
Thrilling Exploits... Drucker
Smart Road to Trouble - Drucker & ?

best I can do right now.

[Yoc]

ah ha!  I thought it was Colan. 

-Yoc
'sticking to baby steps on artist IDs...'

[JVJ]

ah ha!  I thought it was Colan. 

-Yoc
'sticking to baby steps on artist IDs...'

You nailed it, Yoc.
I was VERY fortunate to actually meet Mr. Colan a couple of weeks ago at my local comics shop. Read all about it:
http://lcomics.blogspot.com/2008/12/gene-colan-at-lees-comics.html

I got him to sign the EARLIEST known example of his work in comics: Wings #52 from December 1944. He was pretty surprised. I got to talk to him for awhile and gave him a couple of issues of ImageS to thank him for all of the great art he's produced over the years. A great and very gentle man.

Peace, Jim (|:{>

[Yoc]

Wow, thanks for the link Jim.  Great stuff.  I'd have loved to have heard some of his stories of the early days of comics.  He wasn't there from day one but he knew many who were.
I've also been a fan of ink/artist Leialoha for years as well.
I'm sure it was a great afternoon and for a very GOOD CAUSE too.

[JVJ]

Wow, thanks for the link Jim.  Great stuff.  I'd have loved to have heard some of his stories of the early days of comics.  He wasn't there from day one but he knew many who were.
I've also been a fan of ink/artist Leialoha for years as well.
I'm sure it was a great afternoon and for a very GOOD CAUSE too.

I'd love to get a chance to really "grill" Gene about the Timely Bullpen of the late 40s. THAT would be interesting, but in order to get old-timers to remember NEW information, I've found it necessary to show them the actual books and they often remember new things as they free-associate with the work they did. I wish I could have taken him home for a day. THAT would have been a trip!

Steve is a great guy, too. He lives in San Francisco (about 30 miles north of here) and I've known him for decades. Joe Rubinstein used to be a customer of Bud Plant Illustrated Books when I was running that, so he and Chandler and their respective friends came by my house after the event. It was FUN showing off my collection to Chandler who could really appreciate it. Funny, though, he kept looking at the CONDITION of the books instead of the contents. Sad.

Peace, Jim (|:{>

[narfstar]

I agree with you Jim in your lack of concern for condition. It is the content of the book that has the value. That is why we spend so much time scanning to share with others. I am glad your books are not in great shape or you would not be willing to share them and I sure would not feel comfortable with scanning them. I love the feel and look of the old paper and well loved books. I just got 3 issues of Fisky Fables in poor to fair condition. Of course they will eventually find their way to the site. Covers and centerfolds detached or seperated actually makes them easy to scan. I have to say I am usually happy to find the cover detatched when I go to scan one of your books saves a lot of effort in keeping the cover from detaching. Gotta keep the books lasting as long as we can. And you can know that while the paper may decay away in your boxes, they will probably be preserved forever via digital copies on the internet. Thanks for sharing.

[JVJ]

I agree with you Jim in your lack of concern for condition. It is the content of the book that has the value. That is why we spend so much time scanning to share with others. I am glad your books are not in great shape or you would not be willing to share them and I sure would not feel comfortable with scanning them. I love the feel and look of the old paper and well loved books. I just got 3 issues of Fisky Fables in poor to fair condition. Of course they will eventually find their way to the site. Covers and centerfolds detached or seperated actually makes them easy to scan. I have to say I am usually happy to find the cover detatched when I go to scan one of your books saves a lot of effort in keeping the cover from detaching. Gotta keep the books lasting as long as we can. And you can know that while the paper may decay away in your boxes, they will probably be preserved forever via digital copies on the internet. Thanks for sharing.

It's my pleasure, narf,
and just to prove beyond a doubt that I LOVE brittle books, here's a shot of my shelf of them and an interior shot of one of the folders. I really believe that you could scan right through the plastic sleeves. Haven't tried it myself, but...





That's Krazy Komics #6 open in the 2nd pic, and it's probably the only way I'd ever afford it, or KK #1 which is the last one on the right end of the folders. True #1, Green Hornet 2, Power Comics 1, World Famous Heroes 2, Toyland 3, Samson 1, Wings 13, and many more. To repeat myself, I LOVE brittle books.

[JVJ]

One more (little) thing, narf.
"separated" is spelled with two "e"s separated by two "a"s. I'm an editor by nature and I can't stop myself from correcting on-going spelling errors. Sorry if it comes off as too picky, but, heck, you actually might WANT to know.

Peace? Jim (|:{>

and also, thanks for caring so much about my books.

[OtherEric]

Brittle will do if it gets me- and now, us- the chance to read books we couldn't otherwise.  That's one good side effect of living in the northwest, though.  While we don't have that many books up here to find- distribution was LOUSY around here until the 60's- those that do turn up are almost never brittle.

But I'll happily get beat up copies of several books over a high-grade copy of one I'll be scared to read, that's for sure!

[JVJ]

Brittle will do if it gets me- and now, us- the chance to read books we couldn't otherwise.  That's one good side effect of living in the northwest, though.  While we don't have that many books up here to find- distribution was LOUSY around here until the 60's- those that do turn up are almost never brittle.

But I'll happily get beat up copies of several books over a high-grade copy of one I'll be scared to read, that's for sure!

But my point is that if these books WEREN'T brittle, I wouldn't HAVE them. Where are you going to find a Planet 64 for under $40? Or Samson #1??? - which Guides at $250 in Good! No, bow down to the dry winds of time that sucked the moisture out of these babies. Brittle is BEST!

My secret fantasy, Eric, is that ALL comics in the world suddenly turn brittle and then none of the Condition Freaks would want them and the prices would plummet and us regular folks would get a chance to READ them. A fellow can dream...

[Yoc]

Your collection looks to be the model of organization.  Hats off to you Jim.
I'm lucky if I know where my shoes are in the morning. 

[OtherEric]

But my point is that if these books WEREN'T brittle, I wouldn't HAVE them. Where are you going to find a Planet 64 for under $40? Or Samson #1??? - which Guides at $250 in Good! No, bow down to the dry winds of time that sucked the moisture out of these babies. Brittle is BEST!

Oh, there are plenty of other ways to beat a comic book up enough that the price drops.  I'm just saying that, at least around here, brittle generally isn't the specific way our books degrade.  Water damage is much more common.
40 for a Samson 1 is still impressive as heck, don't get me wrong.

I'm with you in wishing that the prices would plummet so regular folks can read them.  At least we now have scans; there is far more available to the average person than there ever has been before.

[JVJ]

Your collection looks to be the model of organization.  Hats off to you Jim.
I'm lucky if I know where my shoes are in the morning. 

So how come I can always find EVERY comic EXCEPT the one I WANT, Yoc?
But, with the quantities that I'm dealing with, organization is a matter of self-preservation. What is this "snow" stuff you mention (he asks from California)?

And, Eric, I know that there are LOTS of ways to beat up a book, but BRITTLE is simply DARK, not DISTORTED in any other way. That's a distinct advantage over water damage. They scan up nicely, as I did at least one scan that may or may not have made it into the final cut of Greg Sadowski's Supermen. Dark is pretty easy to clean up compared to, for example, Blazing #1. Right?

[Yoc]

D'Oh!!
Don't say that name!  Blazing 1!  BLAZING 1!!
I still have nightmares of cleaning it up!


No, actually it was a good book to experiment on.

Snow is the enemy Jim.  Be glad you don't have any.
-Yoc

[rez]

Wish I had a dollar for every time there's been 'definitely' spelled 'definately'.

Use to bother me something feirce every time I would see the word 'Collectables' instead of 'Collectibles' scrawled freehand on a fleamarket sign

'til I took the time to check the spelling in a dictionary to discover that 'collectable' is an accepted form of the word.

Now it only bothers me.

One more (little) thing, narf.
"separated" is spelled with two "e"s separated by two "a"s. I'm an editor by nature and I can't stop myself from correcting on-going spelling errors. Sorry if it comes off as too picky, but, heck, you actually might WANT to know.

Peace? Jim (|:{>

and also, thanks for caring so much about my books.

[narfstar]

I probably still would not be able to afford a Green Giant #1 or Colossus or Wham 1 or 2. There was an issue of Colossus that was signed by all the contributers that actually went pretty cheap on ebay several years ago. I was shocked at the price. It still was not in my budget but relatively very low for the book, let alone signed. The sellers father had worked in the office where it was produced.
And Jim I do not mind having my mistakes corrected. Now me remembering to spell it right next time is another story. I still contend that it is a genetic abnormality we are stuck with that math teachers can not spell 

"My secret fantasy, Eric, is that ALL comics in the world suddenly turn brittle and then none of the Condition Freaks would want them and the prices would plummet and us regular folks would get a chance to READ them. A fellow can dream..."

[John C]

Of course, it also bears mentioning that collectors wouldn't even have something to collect, if it weren't for the disposable nature of the books making them prone to decay.  If everybody in the '40s treated their books with care, we'd each be buying them second hand for less than a dollar apiece, because the market would be flooded.

[JonTheScanner]

Could I please request this discussion be moved to it's own topic.  It's not that I don't enjoy reading it.  I think I read virtually every post here, but it makes it hard for me to go back and find out if I did indeed upload that zip file I created when I can't find my posts.

Thanks

[narfstar]

Spineless books are by far the easiest to scan. Just pull out one page at at time and scan away. While my Frisky Fables had a spine it was so brittle I could not see making the effort to keep it intact. The staples crumbled out and the pages easily pulled apart. It has been very easy to scan and saves me a lot of time. Books with spines but staples removed are next easiest to scan. That is why I frequently remove the staples from my coverless books. I first number the pages then scan them a fold at a time. "Supple" pages make some books easy to scan as the pages fold back easily. In efforts to keep covers from separating, I found that scanning even pages upside down is easiest. I then rotate them of course.

[John C]

It's no excuse for pirating your thread, of course, but if you hit the "Profile" tab, you can click on "Show Posts."  It starts with the most recent, so you can quickly figure out if you've posted something before.  And, if you're like me, you can continue reading and become mortified as to how many thoroughly stupid things you've said over time...

[Geo (R.I.P.)]

What is this "snow" stuff you mention (he asks from California)

I think this is what Eric was talking about:



It's been like this for the last three days for me and I'm only 30 or so miles away from Eric, it even started snowing again today for awhile. And we have anywhere from 2 to 12 inches starting tomorrow with high winds.

Geo

[Yoc]

Yep, that's the evil stuff!
Always looks so benign in pictures but it's NOT!

Looks like we use the same garbage bins as you guys too Geo.
I've got about the same waiting for me outside right now.  *sigh*

-Yoc