Saturday, May 22, 2021

Space Force Saturday SPACE SQUADRON "Judgment of Boz!"

Behind this spooky (if off-model) Sol Brodsky/Joe Maneely cover...
...from the never-reprinted Atlas' Space Squadron #5 (1952) is an apocalyptic tale about a delusional, obese, but dangerous potential dictator in the 21st Century!
(Who does that remind us of?)
If this tale was produced today, it would be a book-length story with full and double-page splashes!
Yet artist Allen Bellman and the unknown writer pulled it off in only five extremely-crowded pages!
Please Support Atomic Kommie Comics
Visit Amazon and Order...

Friday, May 21, 2021

Friday Fun YAK YAK "Romance vs Realism"

...now here's the second, and sadly, final part of the series!
Dell gave MAD mainstay Jack Davis his own title, to do with as he pleased.
The series, Yak Yak (subtitled "A Pathology of Humor") only ran two issues, but they were pure Davis, who wrote, penciled, inked, and colored the whole project as well as providing painted covers for both issues!

Please Support Atomic Kommie Comics!
Visit Amazon and Order...

Thursday, May 20, 2021

Was INAPAK the Chocolate Drink That NEVER Actually Existed?

Tuesday, we presented the miracle chocolate drink Inapak...
Now here's an interesting point...
It apparently never existed!
Really!
From extensive research (we're talking off-line and on-site) thru the archives of several dealers and collectors who handle related food ephemera like Ovaltine and Quik (now Nesquik) packaging and advertising, I've yet to come across anything (besides the comic book) relating in any way to Inapak!
Could it have been a proposed project that never got off the ground, like Victor Fox's Kooba Kola?
If so, who was behind it?
Magazine Enterprises, the publishers of the The AvengerFunnyMan, and original Ghost Rider, produced the comic, and it's copyrighted in their name, not an outside corporation, as most licensed comics are!
Bob Powell is obviously the artist, though the writer is unknown.
It's theorized on the Grand Comics Database that Gardner Fox scripted the two stories in the book.
Speaking of which, here's the short tale from the back of the book...
Now, here's my theory about who Major Inapak is and how he came to be...
At this point (1951), there were a number of kids' sci-fi tv shows like Captain Video, featuring characters who also promoted their sponsors' products...

...and there was talk of a tv version of radio/comic/movie serial hero Captain Midnight (who was still owned by Ovaltine) with a heavier sci-fi flavor to compete with Captain VideoTom Corbett: Space CadetSpace Patrol, et al.
A Captain Midnight show eventually aired in 1954-56 with some sci-fi elements, but set present-day to keep the budget down.
And of course, it had lots of promotion for products...)
Could this book have been a tryout with the original, futuristic, format for Captain Midnight, spotlighting his sponsor, Ovaltine?
And, when it didn't sell, the story was reformatted with a new character and a non-existent chocolate drink to demonstrate what Magazine Enterprises could do for potential clients, and then used as a trade-show giveaway to drum up business for a licensed-comic division (similar to what both Marvel and DC have today)?
Think about it...
Support Small Business

Visit our
and
 Collectible Stores

Wednesday, May 19, 2021

Wednesday Worlds of Wonder LOST WORLD "Teach Your Children Well..."

See if you can figure out who the returning mysterious figure from the past will be...
...before he/she appears!
Did you guess it would be young, impressionable VoltaMan Igor, last seen HERE?
Will he be a lynchpin in the coming revolution?
Only time will tell...perhaps!
Please Support Atomic Kommie Comics
Visit Amazon and Order...

Tuesday, May 18, 2021

Remember INAPAK, the Amazing Chocolate Drink?

Bosco?
Bah!
Quik?
Crap!
Ovaltine?
Ewww!
You want serious chocolate flavor in your milk?
Here it is...
It must be true!
Major Inapak says so!
And Major Inapak wouldn't lie!
In fact, he uses science to prove his point...
Major Inapak returns to tell the Youth of America what to do...
You'll pardon me while I scamper out to the supermarket to get a box!
Be back Thursday for more on...Inapak!

Monday, May 17, 2021

Monday Mars Madness AMAZING ADVENTURES "Man Who Killed a World!"

Who would've thought a "War of the Worlds" would be decided by hand-to-hand combat?
This never-reprinted tale from Ziff-Davis' Amazing Adventures #6 (1952) gives the details, along with a trick ending...
So, even though the Earthman was defeated, we won!
Heckuva moral lesson there, guys!
Though the writer is unknown, the art is by Paul Parker, who left the comics field after a decade and over 100 stories to became a news reporter for several radio stations in New York City including the all-news station WINS.
Please Support Atomic Kommie Comics!
Visit Amazon and Order...

Sunday, May 16, 2021

Asians and Asian-Americans in Comics...Continued

More from our ongoing examination of how American comics portray Asians and Asian-Americans...
Meet the only costumed Golden Age Asian super-heroine in (where else?)
The Blackhawks' Chinese teammate "Chop-Chop" gets not just one, but two different stories of how he joined the already-established aviator team!
His Silver Age origin at
...plus his politically-incorrect (and somewhat racist) Golden Age Origin at
Meet the immortal "World's Greatest Lover" who seduces (among others) Pacific Islanders in...
Discover secrets about the 1970s Charlie Chan cartoon (and other media versions) that you never dreamed of in...
and finally, meet the villain who's personified the racist concept of "Yellow Peril" for over a century in...

There's lots more coming!
Don't miss it!