Spy Smasher was introduced in the first issue of Fawcett's WHIZ COMICS (numbered as #2 so as to account for an ashcan edition created solely to secure copyright to the title.) The brainchild of Bill Parker and C.C. Beck, he became one of the most popular characters in the Fawcett publishing line, appearing in his … Continue reading Spy Smasher in Peacetime: The Last Spy Smasher story
As we've covered in a number of different earlier posts, the chain of causality which led to the creation of the Amazing Spider-Man, Marvel Comics' signature creation, is long and tangled. Every once in a while I see people make reference to this story in relation to it. And in fact, there isn't any direct … Continue reading The First Spider Man Story
The next book I got was another Famous First Edition, this one of WHIZ COMICS #2, the first appearance of Captain Marvel. The cover isn’t a perfect replica, though–DC had to remove the cover copy “Gangway for Captain Marvel” because of Marvel’s trademark on the Captain Marvel name. The whole issue is a crude but not … Continue reading BHOC: FAMOUS 1st EDITION #F-4
A lovely and iconic WHIZ COMICS cover featuring Captain Marvel and his alter ego Billy Batson by C. C. Beck. This one just captures everything you need to know about the strip in a single image, particularly the big brother-little brother dynamic between Cap and Billy. Good use of color here, too–the red logo never … Continue reading Great Covers – WHIZ COMICS #22
The Tom Brevoort Experience 