[davidmarklaing]

Hello folks,
I'm new here but I've been a fan of vintage comics for years?decades actually.

My interest is more in the art and the visual themes than the stories themselves. This is mostly an academic pursuit but, admittedly, with a touch of the prurient. Hence, a taste for pre-code pulp covers.

[I'm also a big fan of Bob Montana and Dan De Carlo, and the evolution of Archie Comics from the '50s through to the '80s?though I notice there's none here because of copyright issues.]

For the record, I arrived from an image search of Phantom Lady(1947 ? 1949) ... and stayed.

I've tried several times today to make a donation (I admire and usually support sites like this) but so far have not succeeded. I'll  keep trying.

Cheers,
DML

[paw broon]

Hi David and welcome to CB+.  Glad you found your way here.  Many of us have been and are fans of old comics.
No, no Archie, I'm afraid.
Donations - keep trying.
If you fancy, join in the conversations.

[davidmarklaing]

Hi David and welcome to CB+.  Glad you found your way here.  Many of us have been and are fans of old comics.
No, no Archie, I'm afraid.
Donations - keep trying.
If you fancy, join in the conversations.

I actually go by "Mark", having one of those foolishly unused first names. (I blame my parents.)
The transaction finally went through, but I had to use PayPal rather than directly from a card.
I'll try to make a point of joining in the forum conversations.

All the best,
Mark

[Andrew999]

Hi David = Welcome to the House of Fun!

[paw broon]

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOPS
Apologies Mark.
As you're interested in the art and the visual themes, take a stroll through the non English sections as well. There is a lot of very good art that you might not be familiar with.  Actually, there is some lovely stuff in the British section. Many covers on Thriller Picture Library, particularly by Sep E. Scott are excellent.

Enjoy yourself.

[Robb_K]

Welcome Mark.  I also am much more a fan of the artwork than the stories, and a lot more of the older issues. There are thousands of issues here for us to peruse.  So I know you will have lots of enjoyment here, and also I look forward to reading comments from you.  I'm from Winnipeg and Den Haag, Netherlands.  But we have members here from all over The World, who can introduce us to comics from their countries.

[narfstar]

Welcome here Mark. We actually have about 50 Archie stories appearing in issues of Pep Comics that were not renewed. We also have Suzy and Wilber and Katy Keen that might interest you from MLJ/Archie. Lots of other teen titles with great art from other companies. I have always been the rare story over art guy. Maybe because I fell in love with reading comics at such a young age and just loved to read. With all the black and white reprints and non US series I have come to enjoy the art more. While younger the color mattered to me but now it seems to hide how good some of the art was.

[The Australian Panther]

G'day Mark and welcome! Narfstar got in ahead of me when it comes to recommending Archie and Archie-like material here on CB+. 

  I'm also a big fan of Bob Montana and Dan De Carlo, and the evolution of Archie Comics from the '50s through to the '80s

 
I am myself a huge fan of much of the Archie stuff.
Also, can point you in the direction of Tower comics Tippy Teen? 
https://comicbookplus.com/?cid=753
Here you will find work from Samm Schwartz, Harry Lucey and other Archie alumni.
Also if you are interested in teenage comedy strips as a Genre, look at the collection of Newspaper strips and some of the Dell comics.
Jump in and enjoy! Don't be afraid to get your feet wet.

Cheers!

[narfstar]

And if you are a Bob Powell fan https://comicbookplus.com/?cid=3371

[Robb_K]

Yes, the early Wilbur stories were similar to the early Archie stories, in which the protagonist lead character was always getting into trouble.  You may also like the earliest Dell Comics' "Henry Aldrich", which were written and storyboarded by prolific classic comedy writer, John Stanley, as well as Dell's "Andy Hardy".

[davidmarklaing]

Thank you all for the warm welcome.

Narfstar: Though I'd seen bits & pieces of the early PEP comics, this was my first chance to go through them in their entirety -- fascinating stuff. One often forgets the pervasive racism of the time.

I was particularly interested in the visual and character evolution of the Archie characters over their first few years. (But perhaps this is not the thread to reflect more.)

Thanks also to the Panther from Down Under for the Tippy tip; one could have an interesting conversation as to why Betty & Veronica became pop-culture icons and poor Tippy no more than a footnote.

Paw broon: I'll try to explore the non-English material as time permits. Thanks.