Mirth of a Nation

Some things never go out-of-date...

...like dumb jokes and juvenile humor, as these panels from Mirth of a Nation #5 (1943) demonstrate!

Five issues were produced by the Harry "A" Chesler Jr. Features Syndicate for the short-lived Wm H Wise & Company.

Each issue had this notice on the first page...

Reading Room: SUPERSNIPE "There Shall Come...a Costume!" Conclusion

When Last We Left Our FanBoy...

This scene does not appear in the comic, but it's really cool!

After inadvertently saving a scientist neighbor from enemy spies (but not receiving credit for the deed), Koppy McFad aka SuperSnipe decides to adopt a distinctive costume...a pair of his grandfather's red flannel underwear, his father's blue "men's club" lodge cape, and a domino mask.

Suitably-garbed, the Man of 1955 follows some state Conservation Wardens as they prepare to battle an invasion of Japanese Beetles.
Unfortunately, the neophyte superhero thinks "Japanese Beetles" are like Navy SEALS (they're really insects), and screws up the Wardens' attempt to trap and exterminate the bugs.
Spanked and chastised, Koppy is sent to the grocery store where he sees a sign denouncing sugar hoarding as being unpatriotic...

And you thought Peter Parker/Spider-Man was the first "hero with problems"!
Speaking of which, this story is actually untitled.
The Grand Comics DataBase made up their own title "Invasion of the Japanese Beetles".
But since that plotline is less than half of the story, I thought something a bit more evocative would work better.
Since the big point of the story is Koppy gaining his distinctive garb, I thought a Stan Lee-esque phrase would convey the point.

Story and art for this tale from SuperSnipe Comics V1N6 (1942) by George Marcoux.

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Reading Room: SUPERSNIPE "There Shall Come...a Costume!" Part 2

When Last We Left Our FanBoy...

After inadvertently saving a scientist neighbor from enemy spies (but not receiving credit for the deed), Koppy McFad aka SuperSnipe decides to adopt a distinctive costume...a pair of his grandfather's red flannel underwear, his father's blue "men's club" lodge cape, and a domino mask.

Now suitably-garbed, the Man of 1955 follows some state Conservation Wardens as they prepare to battle an invasion of Japanese Beetles...

You'll find out...tomorrow!

Story and art for this tale from SuperSnipe Comics V1N6 (1942), which was Koppy's first issue, by George Marcoux.

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Reading Room: SUPERSNIPE "There Shall Come...a Costume!" Part 1

He was so popular he took over Army & Navy Comics after one issue...

...but at this point, Koppy McFad, aka SuperSnipe, still didn't have a costume!

Will the now-suitably-garbed SuperSnipe save us all from an invasion of Japanese beetles?
Be here tomorrow to find out!

Story and art for this tale from SuperSnipe Comics V1N6 (1942), which was Koppy's first issue, by George Marcoux.

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The "Star Wars" Defense System...in 1962!

You think Ronald Reagan was the first US President to think of it?

From Drift Marlo #1 (1962) Art by Tom Cooke

In the early 1960s, we already had satellites in orbit that would have detected missile launches from the "damn Communists"!

Code-named MiDAS for Missile Defense Alarm System, the plan was to eventually put anti-missile missiles in orbit that could supplement land and sea-based defenses.

As it was, a number of scanner-equipped satellites were orbited, but the crude sensors kept mistaking other heat sources (including sunlight reflected from heavy cloud cover) as missile launches, so the plan was eventually abandoned.

We mention this because the project is one of the central elements of the current entry featuring the Silver Age character Drift Marlo: Space Detective at our "brother" blog Crime & Punishment™.

Check out Part 1 HERE and Part 2 HERE!

Here's some more fact-based feature pages from the Drift Marlo series showing the future as we hoped it would be in 1962...

Who says comics aren't educational?

Reading Room: SPEED CARTER: SPACEMAN "Space Trap"

"Wow! That's the second biggest robot I've ever seen!"

But, in the 1950s (or the future as seen from the 1950s), giant robots didn't transform into trucks...

This is the sort of story you wish Joe Maneely had ten pages instead of five to play with to allow a couple more pages of robot vs spaceship mayhem.
The series continues to play up the Saturnians as the future's equivalent of the Chinese Communists of the 1950s.
Written (as are all the Speed Carter stories) by Hank Chapman and illustrated by original artist Joe Maneely.

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Design of the Week Redux--King Kola

Each week, we post a limited-edition design, to be sold for exactly 7 days, then replaced with another, unless it sells really well, then we do a "redux"!
This week, once more, an ad for a soft drink (like Kooba Cola) that never existed!
What's even kooler is that the art is by the renowned creator of Plastic Man, Jack Cole, who did very little advertising art!
(Cole was working for Harry Chesler Studios when he did this ad which appeared in several Chesler comic books.)
We've digitally-remastered it from a mint-condition comic for large repro on thing like beach blankets and posters as well as t-shirts, mugs, bags and other collectibles that would be perfect for beach and vacation use!
Order now, because next Sunday, it'll be gone like an ice cream cone in the hot sun!