Wish I had kept all my old comics from the 50's , and we had a few hand-me-downs from the 40's as well...I just don't todays comic artists in the same league as the old timers..When you stayed home from school sick ,you spent all day in bed with your collection,lots of us honed our reading skills with comics.... http://postimg.org/gallery/25z10snks/
Golden Age of Comic Books
- Thread starter malocchio
- Start date
I have most of mine from the 70s. They are pretty groovy.
Mine were mid-1960's onward as I was born in 1959. Comics from 1930's to about 1970 were da bomb!
I grew up in the fifties, and I was forbidden to read comic books. Too "low-class." Along with Coke, bubble gum, cheeseburgers, bowling...
My dad has a TON of comics starting from the 50's and going through the late 70's. I never got in to them myself.
I was an 80's kid. We had some pretty classic tales. I think that was when people were realising that comics were big business, and were starting to employ "serious" writers and artists. The late 80's, very early 90's were the pinnacle of comic books, IMO.
I recently joined the local library. I haven't had a library card since high school. I was pleasantly surprised to see that they now carry quite a good collection of graphic novels, which I have been taking an occasional look at. To be honest, most of the newer stuff, though it looks very flashy, doesn't have the stories or heart of the stuff from back then.
I recently joined the local library. I haven't had a library card since high school. I was pleasantly surprised to see that they now carry quite a good collection of graphic novels, which I have been taking an occasional look at. To be honest, most of the newer stuff, though it looks very flashy, doesn't have the stories or heart of the stuff from back then.
I have been spending an embarrassing amount of money on reprints lately. They act kind of like a time portal for me. They send me back to a time when you'd run down to the dime store and check out the spinning wire racks for the latest comics and spending lazy afternoons transported to new worlds much more exciting than the confines of small town living could give you. The golden age was before my time but I really dig the comics from that era. I don't really get into the super hero stuff very much so I've been getting into the war, crime and horror stuff from the era. Some of my golden age stuff:
EC Vault of Horror
EC Shock Suspenstories
EC Weird Science and Fantasy
EC Haunt of Fear
EC Tales From The Crypt
EC War Against Crime
EC Crime Patrol
EC Crime Suspenstories
EC Frontline Combat
Witches Tales
Out of the Night
Tomb of Terror
Black Magic
Strange World of Your Dreams
Adventures Into The Unknown
Skeleton Hand
Weird Mysteries
Some of my stuff from the silver age or later:
Doc Savage
Sgt Fury And His Howling Commandos
The Losers
Unknown Soldier
The House Of Mystery
Strange Adventures
Charley's War
EC Vault of Horror
EC Shock Suspenstories
EC Weird Science and Fantasy
EC Haunt of Fear
EC Tales From The Crypt
EC War Against Crime
EC Crime Patrol
EC Crime Suspenstories
EC Frontline Combat
Witches Tales
Out of the Night
Tomb of Terror
Black Magic
Strange World of Your Dreams
Adventures Into The Unknown
Skeleton Hand
Weird Mysteries
Some of my stuff from the silver age or later:
Doc Savage
Sgt Fury And His Howling Commandos
The Losers
Unknown Soldier
The House Of Mystery
Strange Adventures
Charley's War
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I loved my late 70's/early 80's comics. I will say, though, that there is a renaissance of comics and graphic novels right now, and guys like Neil Gaiman and Alan Moore have really taken the storytelling in very interesting directions.
Comics shaped my imagination...these days I am enjoying the graphic Tintin novels. Modern graphic novels are heading in exciting directions as Bob noted, but there was something to be said of the "Sea Monkey" era of comic books. Especially the super hero genre.
I highly recommend the graphic novel Persepolis. It is brilliant.
I highly recommend the graphic novel Persepolis. It is brilliant.
Tintin is pretty cool. And the art is deceptively sophisticated if you look at it closely. Herge's attention to detail is quite remarkable.
I really may have to go this route. I read TWD religiously and I'm always looking for a new book to read but find I'm not into the super hero's like I used to be. Except for DP. That's some funny stuff right there. I think I might really enjoy the other categories you spoke of Mike.
Thanks for starting this thread. When I was a kid in the 60s comic books were an integral part of our lives. We spent many a day lounging reading comics. The superheroes were role models for our play. That was back in the day when imagination and playing out doors was the norm. We would ride our bikes around the neighbourhood and play superheroes. It was great fun.
I still buy comic books now and again. And books of reprints from the old days. The colourful images are still wonderful. I prefer the old school type comics, but some of the new glossy page ones are quite interesting. And graphic novels are pretty neat as well. I don't collect comics (shaving gear takes all my spare change), but I think they are an awesome art/literary form. I am certain it was my love of comics as a kid that gave birth to my love of reading today.
I still buy comic books now and again. And books of reprints from the old days. The colourful images are still wonderful. I prefer the old school type comics, but some of the new glossy page ones are quite interesting. And graphic novels are pretty neat as well. I don't collect comics (shaving gear takes all my spare change), but I think they are an awesome art/literary form. I am certain it was my love of comics as a kid that gave birth to my love of reading today.
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I actively read and collected comics in the '80s and early '90s, and I still keep up with some things. Part of the fun I never anticipated is being an authority for my kids on all the characters in the movies that have been and are coming out.
When I was quite young, my Grandmother had a beach house. Wooden shuttered, screened windows all around. No air conditioning. Little, black and white TV where I first watched Doctor Who. Shrimper and his wife living next door always offering us first pick from the day's catch. And a box filled with '50s comic books under one of the tall beds on the sleeping porch.
In other words, Heaven on Earth.
When I was quite young, my Grandmother had a beach house. Wooden shuttered, screened windows all around. No air conditioning. Little, black and white TV where I first watched Doctor Who. Shrimper and his wife living next door always offering us first pick from the day's catch. And a box filled with '50s comic books under one of the tall beds on the sleeping porch.
In other words, Heaven on Earth.
Absolutely.
It is also a bonus my public library system has the complete works. Comics(graphic novels) are not just for kids.
Absolutely.
It is also a bonus my public library system has the complete works. Comics(graphic novels) are not just for kids.
When I was a kid the ONLY comics the school library had were Tintin and Asterix. I think they might have been approved by the public school system because they were slightly educational. Sort of. I liked both, but Asterix was my favourite. If it was raining I could read one Asterix at recess, or two in the lunch break. In winter I reckon I read all of them about ten times each.
I appreciate Tintin more as an adult.
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Asterix is a scream.
Impressive.
Reprints come in a variety of ways. The EC comics I noted above are color reprints in both hard (EC Archives-beautiful but pricey) and soft cover (EC Annuals). They recreate the covers for each issue as well as the stories but none of the ads. The EC comics are probably the best written and executed stories of the lot. DC Comics has their comic collections under "Showcase Presents __________". They are 500+ page books where only the stories are reprinted (no covers) and they are in black and white.
I discovered several of the more obscure horror titles while recently shopping at a Half Price Books store. There were various titles by Harvey Horrors, American Comics Group and Pre Code Classics. I bought up a bunch of the hard covers when HPB was running a coupon special week. I hit them hard on the 40% and 50% off days. What's cool about these collection is that they reprint the entire comic - the covers, the stories and the ads. The ads are what really gives these comics a lot of extra flavor and really brings back the whole comic book experience of my childhood. The ads are fascinating and I can't help but laugh at some of them and marvel at the prices things sold for 60 some years ago. Granted, a lot of the stories are kind of hokey and the writing isn't always up to par in these old horror comics but that's all part of the experience and the nostalgia. I love them.
Thank you sir!
There are probably only 2 or 3 titles on my list where I have the complete runs in reprint. I quickly stopped chasing complete over getting a variety of stuff. I've always enjoyed comics/graphic novels. It's so nice these days to be able to buy so many reprint collections. Some other titles I didn't mention:
American Splendor (almost all of them)
The Adventures of Tintin (all of them)
The Complete Maus
Dick Tracy (Chester Gould era)
I've also gotten into a lot of British war comic collections (besides Charley's War) which are all wonderful:
Darkie's Mob
Major Eazy
Johnny Red
Rat Pack
Garth Ennis' Battle Classics
Commando - The Dirty Dozen
Commando - True Brit
Commando - All Guns Blazing
It wasn't until I started listing all these titles that I realized how much I have!
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