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[boox909]

Our friends over at the Flashback Universe blog are asking: When did you first become aware of Public Domain and/or Golden Age Comics?

http://flashbackuniverse.blogspot.com/2010/08/how-did-you-discover-golden-age.html


WARNING: This is pure Comics Geek Heaven!!!  It'll date a bunch of us too!    I own every book featured!

[Ophysette]

My first exposure to GA comics was DC Giants in the early '60's.  The first time I had my hands on GA comics was in 1964 when I spent the summer with my aunt and uncle.  There was a small stack of old comics in the basement,  The only one I can remember specifically is Black Cat.

[JonTheScanner]

I knew Superman and Batman had been published for quite some time.  Superman Annual #1 had those pictures of first issues on its back.  I recall reading in an early Flash some reader saying he'd been a fan of the Flash since he'd worn Mercury's winded helmet.  I didn't quite know what to make of this because I think I'd heard mention that he'd started just a few years back in Showcase.  OTOH I couldn't figure out how he was up to issue #110 so soon -- I think that's the first one I read.

The Atom Showcase issue was a real revelation since it had a short text piece about the early JSA.  And the early JSA had different members from those depicted in Flash (I think it was #137, but might have been an earlier issue.)  Now I was well aware that members might have been added to the JSA as they had been to the JLA -- but the thought of losing members that was -- well unthinkable to my young mind.

[bowers]

I was already a huge comic fan in the early '60s. An uncle of mine, who worked at the local dump, one day presented me with a huge pile of Golden Age comics which he had "rescued". This was my first introduction to pre-code comics. Wow- people really died in these stories! The Blackhawks shot people with guns and Batman threw hoodlums off of buildings! The writing was much more adult than what I was used to and the artwork sometimes cruder and cartoonlike, but more graphic and with a charm all it's own. I later  discovered that the local charity thrift shops sold bales of old comics, many coverless and damaged, for a dime! While I was still mainly a Silver-Age fan, I learned to appreciate the Golden Age. Cheers, Bowers

[boox909]

I saw an add the fanzine that DC published in the 1970s (I forget the name of it), and I had no idea who some of the folks were. "Is that another Hawkman? What's Wonder Woman doing? Who is that white pasty guy in the green cape?" From there I discovered Famous First Editions, and quickly began hunting down all of the reprint material that I could find from DC and Marvel.

Those were the days when DC and Marvel released the material for fun, whereas now, it is all about having someone redraw the material so the price can be jacked up. Just say'n...

B.

[misappear]

Definitely Superman Annual #8.  I get misty just remembering how cool the experience of reading that was. 

--Dave

[CharlieRock]

I was really interested in the history of comic books and was doing personal research into it's Golden Age when I stumbled upon this site. Have been hooked since.

[isaura]

I started reading comics at 20 years old in 2008. So in love for comics. One day i said:
"I really want to know the comics and their origins, i wanna read the best and most influential comics"
Consequently, I met a golden age.

[Guardian7]

Ohhh Nice question...

awwww long answer...

Somehow two comics ended up in my bedroom in 1976 (5th grade) One was Green Lantern the other was Batman.
I looked them over and enjoyed them. Being artistic they appealed to me.

So I went out looking for more... and that is when I saw him... the Flash. If any one character hooked me to comics it was him and fortunately at that time Comic Racks used to keep back issues forever... YEA! for 7/11!!!

Then I found some boy named Kid Flash... way cool.

Both those characters led to the JLA and the Titans... and then there was another Justice League... wait. These characters were older. This was the Justice Society.

Being young I had no idea how old those characters were. But the art by Joe Staton ROCKED! PLUS... ANOTHER FLASH!!! Yea! FLASH!!

A short while later (maybe a year). A Library that I lived near was going to throw away all the comics it had acquired... and I asked if I could have them... and that is when I discovered the Golden Age.

In a back Issue of JLA in some Giant Sized Format (number eludes me. Sorry)... there was a Story of the JSA vs. Evil Star.
Then I realized how long they had been around. Which was awesome... those characters really were older than me.

When obscure chara would show up... like let's say Mr. Terrific. It would open up a whole world of questioning... Who is that? What does he do? Why does he look like that? Who did he fight? etc... I am sure at least some of you can maybe relate.

I stumbled across the Centaur Universe in a Comics Feature article back in the 80s and have been hunting them ever since.
Comicsnorth and myself have talked and searched for stuff on these characters for a very long time.

Thank God for this site and it's sister one.

When I discovered the Golden Age it was a whole new world of discovery and fun.

Fun I never expected to be still having at my age with comics... especially older (out of my range) ones.

Thank God for this site and it's sister one.

That's it...

G7

[CreepysFan]

Through the Marvel horror titles (which were often reprints from the Golden-Age), and books from the library concerning the history of comics ( stories like the original Green Lantern). It was harder to come across Golden-Age stories back in the early `70's, there wern't Archive collections (Or this wonderful online site) back then.

[Guardian7]

CreepysFan is totally right.
Thank God for SHOWCASE, MARVEL ESSENTIALS and The STAFF and FANS of GAC and DCM for all their hard work in giving us something that in truth. Many of us would never be able to own and read.

Now all we need is a hearkening of a NEW GOLDEN AGE.

G7