[Serj]

Thought I would create a post in the comic talk section as its bit bare currently.

Do you have any favorite comics or publishers we are currently hosting on the Golden Age Comics website?

Or is your favorite publisher/comic missing from our site?

Would love to hear what comics people like on the site currently

[Aratak]

The two Golden Age companies that continually amaze me by the freshness of their material and by the depth of their art bullpens are Fiction House and Quality.

I've always maintained that the finest bullpen of the Golden Age was Bill Gaines' EC Comics line - heck, finest all-time, I'd say. But with Jack Cole's Plastic Man, Reed Crandall's Blackhawk, Lou Fine's Midnight, and the rest of the lesser Quality lights, I'm quite impressed. Some excellent printing, too.

As to the Fiction House, I love the Good Girl art. You can see from whence Dave Stevens drew much of his inspiration during his fine 80's work!

[jonahhex]

i really agree with aratak about Quality.

But I just want to share how impressed I am with MLJ's PEP.  The original Archie is so good.  Its sad how formulaic the series became...

[Aratak]

But I just want to share how impressed I am with MLJ's PEP.  The original Archie is so good.  Its sad how formulaic the series became...

I agree with this, as well. The costumed heroes are highly entertaining - and superbly scanned, for the most part, too. I am a bit struck by the consistent low caliber of the art in them, however.

The Archie "teen" imprints really had better art. I suppose the company moved that way fairly quickly...

This seeming prejudice against their "heroic" stories did not hurt my enjoyment of them during their Silver Age "Mighty Comics" incarnation. I loved "The Mighty Crusaders" with that - eh - eccentric Paul Reinman art.

[Yoc]

Gee, pick a favourite?
That's like asking a parent to pick a favourite child!

My first love was MLJ, then Lev Gleason for Cole's early work.  Later I discovered Timely and GA DC books.  Today I especially like Quality, Centaur and Fiction-House.  But really I enjoy finding anything obscure.

I've been on a big Fletcher Hanks kick the last while.  For those that don't know him check out this new tribute site to his Stardust creation made by my buddy Kory:
http://www.themysterywalk.com/Stardust-Character-Page.html
Note there are some on-line comics there including a newly scanned Fantastic Comics #10 story I've never seen before.  You can also find Hank's work in the early Planet Comics and his Fantomah character in Fiction-House's Jungle Comics.

Enjoy!
-Yoc

[John C]

Like Yoc, I'm not sure if I can muster a favorite without feeling like I've done something wrong, but I'm finding something about Centaur's books I like.  It might be the overall quality, but it could also be that a lot of character concepts appeared there for the first time in comics.

Fox also had some great characters, including the ripoffs; I look forward to seeing "The Moth" someday, for example, to see how close they pushed to Batman.  Turned out that Wonderman wasn't nearly the infringement I expected.

[Aratak]

I've been on a big Fletcher Hanks kick the last while.  For those that don't know him check out this new tribute site to his Stardust creation made by my buddy Kory:
http://www.themysterywalk.com/Stardust-Character-Page.html
-Yoc

AAaaahhh. Okay, I wasn't familiar with his name, but I've looked at that art before. He sorta reminds me of one of my favorites, Basil Wolverton! Really a fascinating, singular vision. Probably not everybody's cup o' tea, I'm sure. I know that I have the skin, too (Dope that I am, he might even be in my Golden Age Hero files!).

[Yoc]

AAaaahhh. Okay, I wasn't familiar with his name, but I've looked at that art before. He sorta reminds me of one of my favorites, Basil Wolverton! Really a fascinating, singular vision. Probably not every-body's cup o' tea, I'm sure. I know that I have the skin, too (Dope that I am, he might even be in my Golden Age Hero files!).

Yes, Hank's is like a poor man's Wolverton.  Basil had heaps of undeniable talent, he just chose to use it in his own style and the norms be damned.  I admit I wasn't a Basil fan until a few years after first seeing him.  But I fell hard for Hanks right away after seeing his Fantomah feature.  [Johnny Carson voice] And Stardust, wow, that's just weird, wild stuff![/Johnny Carson voice]

If you managed a hero file for Stardust I'd be impressed MrA!  His powers changed from page to page.  He was like the Spectre for doing that.  He'd be worth a ton of prestige points if you wanted to use him in the  FF game!

Hey, jcolag, if I can find some Moth material I'll be sure to upload it.  I'm a big fan of Fox as well.  No surprise there right?

Take care all,
-Yoc

[cimmerian32]

I really like Avon, Realistic & Ziff-Davis...  they had some great talent, particularly in the horror books...  some really great mood artists...  Ziff-Davis had painted covers, and Avon had Everett Raymond Kinstler!  He is fast becoming my third favorite Atom Age artist, after Frank Frazetta and Matt Baker...

Centaur...  I am currently acquainting myself with that one...  I'll get back to ya

All-time favorite?  Fiction House...  the Iger Studio, Zolnerowich, Matt Baker!  Oh yeah...  Fiction House ruled...  EC was a latecomer...  Fiction House had been going strong for 9 or 10 years when EC hit the big-time, and technically, EC isn't Golden Age, they're Atom Age...  Golden Age = 1938-1945...  Atom Age = 1946-1955...

the Superhero companies had the worst art of all...  with the possible exceptions of Alex Schomburg & Bill Finger...

[Yoc]

That's some selection you named Cimm!

Now tell everyone... just what is 'Squinky'??   

-Yoc

[cimmerian32]

Squinky...  when something is sooooo clean that, when you rub your finger across it, it makes a "squink" noise.  Usually heard on wet porcelain, tile, or skin 

[Yoc]

Ohhhhh, is that what that's called?
Dang, they got a name for everything now!
Next you'll be telling me that the ends of shoelaces have a name and so does that gunk at the top of ketchup bottles!   

-Yoc

[Aratak]

Next you'll be telling me that the ends of shoelaces have a name and so does that gunk at the top of ketchup bottles!   
-Yoc

The ends of shoelaces are called aglets. The gunk at the top of ketchup bottles is...uh...tomato clotty?

Special bonus word: the small indention underneath your nose is your filtrum. I know this because I looooove Gil Kane's artwork!

[BobS]

I've always liked the Quality comics too!

I never bought / read any of the WWII era Blackhawk or Military Comics & am really impressed especially by the Military Comics scanned here.

Jack Cole, rather than Lou Fine, did Midnight (in Smash Comics).

Years ago my father (born 1927) told me about the Clock -- the 1st masked hero original to the comic books.
At the time I had never heard of Brenner's the Clock.

I'm enjoying reading the Quality & Centaur Clock stories.

Lou Fine is one of my fave GA artists -- I enjoy his the Ray in Smash & Black Condor in Crack.

I'd like to see more early Fox comics here -- Fine did early The Flame in Wonderworld & MAYBE in the earliest The Flame.

I used to have maybe 2 issues of MLJ Top Notch and a couple issues of Pep with Irv Novick's Shield.
I'm downloading ALL the MJL here! I like Black Hood, Shield, Hangman has fantastic Bob Fuje art, & especially like Mr. Justice. I think I like Mr. Justice better than the Spectre.

The Fox jungle comics have been called abominations, but I like 'em junk that they are. I also like Phantom Lady & virtually any Matt Baker art.

I have a coverless copy of It Rhymes With Lust by the way. Anybody have a scan of the cover? If so,
I'll scan eventually.

I have liked the Fiction House comics ever since I got a Jumbo #44 back in the 1960s! (Unfortunately, I don't have anymore.) I like all the Sheenas -- which are not quite as junky as the Fox jungle ladies -- and I also like the Jerry Grandinetti Dr. Drew stories.

I'm enjoying delving more deeply & broadly in the Fiction House comics here!

I also really like many of the Magazine Enterprises comics & Avon comics.
Frazetta Thun'da & Ghost Rider are great & Dick Ayers did good stuff back in the 1950s!
I also like virtually all Bob Powell Me stuff & also his Sheena.

Wally Wood did some Avon sci fi comics -- also Fu Manchu & probably others. I also like Everette
Raymond Kinstler who did some Avon westerns if memory serves.

Some of the 1st comic books I bought in the 1950s were Charlton comics so Charlton is a sentimental favorite of mine. I like virtually all the Ditko stuff & also some of the Charlton westerns. I think the 1st Charlton I bought was Timmy the Timid Ghost.

Back in the 1970s I bought various Nedor/Standard comics when they were relatively cheap. Black Terror has cool name & costume & the stories weren't awful. Also Jerry Robinson drew some Black Terror. And
Shomburg(sp?) did fantastic covers on later comics.

I love comics!
Bob

[Yoc]

Hi Bob!
Welcome to the board!
I'd certainly LOVE to see a full sized scan of Rhymes with Lust!!  And I know a few others here are big Baker fans as well.

I've got HUGE scans of the cover and rear cover if you'd like them as found on Heritage.
Let me know if you'd like them.

Take care,
-Yoc

I have a coverless copy of It Rhymes With Lust by the way. Anybody have a scan of the cover? If so,
I'll scan eventually.

[BobS]

Hi Bob!
Welcome to the board!
I'd certainly LOVE to see a full sized scan of Rhymes with Lust!!  And I know a few others here are big Baker fans as well.

I've got HUGE scans of the cover and rear cover if you'd like them as found on Heritage.
Let me know if you'd like them.

Take care,
-Yoc

I'd like 'em. My email address is bee_ess107@hotmail.com.

Rhymes with Lust is digest-sized.
I don't have a scanner currently (I used to have one) but I plan on getting one shortly in order to scan some comics.

Bob

I have a coverless copy of It Rhymes With Lust by the way. Anybody have a scan of the cover? If so,
I'll scan eventually.

[Yoc]

Great news Bob and all other Baker fans!
Seems Darkhorse has been reading our minds and are going to be publishing a reprint of 'Rhymes with Lust'!!


Here's a link to read more on the graphic novel.
http://www.darkhorse.com/profile/profile.php?sku=14-090

And here are your cover and back covers Bob.  Just click on the thumbnail to see the full sized scan.
-Yoc

[kusunoki]

I haven't gotten around to reading too much of the others yet, but I have to say that I love the Fawcett stuff. I just read the 3-part introduction of Capt. Marvel Jr. for the first time, and man is that stuff good. Mac Raboy's work is so beautiful.

I also have to add my appreciation of the Quality books. They seemed to have a tight house style and a happy situation in which such excursions outside the house style as took place were usually limited to the brilliance of artists like Cole, Eisner, and Fine.

Kusunoki

[Brainster]

Let me highly recommend the American Comics Group (ACG) and particularly Cookie.  If you like Archie you should love Cookie.  Dan Gordon, a highly talented animator (worked on the Fleischer Superman series, for example) drew many of the stories, which have an amusing level of mayhem.

ACG had a pipeline to Hollywood's animation community apparently and especially in the 1940s they had terrific artwork.  Check out Bob Wick on "Teepee Tim" or "Our Little Sister" (backup in the Cookie books).  His characters look more alive in the panel than any other artist I've ever seen.

ACG pioneered the horror titles with Adventures into the Unknown.  Almost all their output was written by one man, the incredible Richard Hughes.  Hughes usually managed to put a surprise twist ending in his stories, as had the EC writers, but he kept doing it years after EC was gone.

Unfortunately Herbie is not here as he was published in the Silver Age, but his series is well worth a gander, and the scans are out there.

[Mr. Izaj]

  I'm very much a huge fan of the Quality and Fawcett books of the Golden Age thanks in large part to DC's revivals of their characters during the 1970's and 1980's as well as reprintings of some of those stories from those two publishers. I'm also very much a fan of the MLJ line as well thanks to Archie/Radio Comics' revivals of  MLJ's superheroes during the 1960's (I first discovered them through reprints in the various Archie comics digests and through acquiring back issues of the 1960's books that they appeared in). I should also add that I'm a fan of the Nedor/Better/Standard material as well. The only stuff I'm not to fond off is much of the later Fox material and much of the Fiction House stuff.
 
  I'm very much a huge fan of the work of the Quality staff especially that of Lou Fine, Reed Crandall, Paul Gustavson, and Al Bryant. My favorite Fawcett artists are Mac Raboy, Charles Sultan, and Jack Binder. Irv Novick, Bob Fujitani, Mort Meskin, Al Camy, and Sam Cooper are my favorite MLJ artists. I'm now starting to get into the works of Bill Ward, Lily Renee, and Fletcher Hanks as well.