BHOC: X-MEN #16

I continued to be a regular nuisance to my father, trying to convince him time and time again to stop by the Heroes World location in the Levittown Mall on his way home from work (since the bank branch that he operated out of was in that same mall complex) and pick me up back … Continue reading BHOC: X-MEN #16

BHOC: MARVEL’S GREATEST COMICS #79

It was always a welcome moment when a new issue of MARVEL'S GREATEST COMICS turned up at my local 7-11. FANTASTIC FOUR was my favorite comic book at the time, and getting an issue of MGC, which reprinted older issues of FANTASTIC FOUR, was virtually as good as getting a new issue. The big change … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL’S GREATEST COMICS #79

BHOC: AVENGERS ANNUAL #3

This was the second of two successive AVENGERS ANNUALS that my father brought home for me one night from the Heroes World outlet in the Nassau Mall in Levittown, where he worked. He was very proud of the fact that he'd gotten such early issues based on the numbers, and I never did explain to … Continue reading BHOC: AVENGERS ANNUAL #3

WC: SGT FURY AND HIS HOWLING COMMANDOS #10

There were more than a few early issues of SGT FURY AND HIS HOWLING COMMANDOS in that box of about 150 Silver Age comics that I purchased for fifty bucks back in 1988. And the reason for that no doubt was that it wasn't a super hero series. While all of these books have appreciated … Continue reading WC: SGT FURY AND HIS HOWLING COMMANDOS #10

BHOC: SUPERMAN #327

It would have been at about this time that I read the Pete Hamill column in the New York Daily News that is reproduced at the link below, which had a huge impact on me. As I describe in that piece, while Hamill's writing about his friend Casey was intended to underscore the emptiness and … Continue reading BHOC: SUPERMAN #327

BHOC: MARVEL SUPER-HEROES #74

This was a cool surprise to greet me at the 7-11's spinner rack that Thursday afternoon. I had taken to following MARVEL SUPER-HEROES regularly by this point, but a story that guest-starred the Fantastic Four was incredibly welcome. Even though I'd never experienced one firsthand, the concept of a Thing vs Hulk fight being something … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL SUPER-HEROES #74

Brand Echh: Captain Nice #1

The overwhelming success of the 1966 BATMAN television program didn't just set off an explosive wave of popularity for comic book super heroes, it also had an impact on the television field. Because when any show is successful, rival networks often moved to create something similar, so as to draft off of the national interest. … Continue reading Brand Echh: Captain Nice #1

BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #102

I've spoken before about how the very first comic shop I ever encountered, the Heroes World outlet in Levittown, New York, was situated in the same shopping complex where my father worked for Chase Manhattan Bank. What this meant practically is that I could occasionally prevail upon him to stop by the store on his … Continue reading BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #102

WC: JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #101

This issue of JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY represents the beginning of the fully-formed period of Thor's adventures. While launched over a year before in issue #83, the strip was swiftly handed over by editor Stan Lee to other creators to write and draw--Jack Kirby's talents were needed elsewhere, it seemed--and consequently, the series wasn't working as … Continue reading WC: JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #101

WC: FANTASTIC FOUR #31

This issue of FANTASTIC FOUR, #31, was another book that I got in my Windfall Comics purchase of 1988, in which I wound up buying a long box of about 150 Silver Age comics for the dirt-cheap price of $50.00. I had read this story previously in its later MARVEL'S GREATEST COMICS reprinting, but it … Continue reading WC: FANTASTIC FOUR #31