Friday Holiday Fun CHRISTMAS CARNIVAL "Santa's Red Red Nose"

What happens if Kris Kringle gets sick on Christmas Eve?

This tale from St John's Christmas Carnival (1952) 100-page one-shot gives you the answer!

It was all a dream!

Thank Heavens!

The thought of a Christmas without Santa is just too much to bear! ;-)
This tale (and the entire Christmas Carnival 100-page 25-cent book) were published twice!
Once in 1952 by Ziff-Davis and again in 1955 by St John Publishing, which bought the Ziff-Davis comics line's material when the publisher liquidated that division after the "Seduction of the Innocent" witch hunt!
Ironic, since Ziff-Davis Comics was one of the least-offensive publishers on the magazine racks!
The writer and artist(s) are unknown.

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Great Treasury of Christmas Comic Book Stories
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Friday Holiday Fun CHRISTMAS CARNIVAL "Twas the Night Before Christmas and All Through the House..."

It's a pretty long title for a one-pager...

...but the pay-off makes it worthwhile!

The writer and artist for this piece from the one-shot anthology Christmas Carnival (published by Ziff-Davis in 1952 and reprinted by St John in 1955) are, sadly, unknown.

But we didn't want this piece, unseen for 70 years, to be forgotten...so here it is for your enjoyment!
In fact, since this 100-page comic hasn't been reprinted in almost 3/4 of a century, we're going to run more material from it for the rest of December, with the finale on the day after Christmas being a story by Dave (MAD magazine) Berg!

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Enjoy an Autumnal ADVENTURE IN ROMANCE with "September Squall"

Since it's September and the cold winds are beginning to blow...

...we thought we'd re-present one of the few romance comic stories actually tied-in with the season from an experimental magazine-sized comic book which featured romance stories with high adventure, historical, and Western tales in a kool cross-genre mash-up!

Click  Here!

Reading Room DO YOU BELIEVE IN NIGHTMARES? "Man Who Crashed into Another Era"

Here's a short story featuring dinosaurs, illustrated by Steve Ditko...

...just before his stint on Charlton's Gorgo!

Ok, so it was the old "It's only a dream" scenario.

You got to admit, it's well-done!

From St John's Do You Believe in Nightmares? #1 (1957), a short-lived anthology produced just before St John went out of business.

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Unexplored Worlds

Steve Ditko Archives, Vol 2

Friday Fun ABBOTT AND COSTELLO COMICS "Hail, Hail, the Gangplank's Here"

You Want Fun?
Let the Cry Ring Forth..."Heyyyyy, Abotttttt!"

...as we proudly re-present a fun frolic unseen by readers since its' only reprinting in 1955 (70 years, readers!)

This tale, illustrated by Lily Renee & Eric Peters, was cover-featured in it's premiere appearance in St. John's Abbott and Costello Comics #8 (1949)

It's final appearance was in St John's Abbott and Costello Comics #28 (1955)

So, either way, unless you paid a hefty sum for either issue, this is the first time you're seeing it!

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Sixty Years of "Who's on First?"
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Space Force Saturdays ATOM-AGE COMBAT "Sky Diver"

Though this 1950s Comic Usually Presented Future Atomic War Between Countries...

...it did present a couple of alien invasion tales during it's brief run!

Scripted by an unknown writer, penciled by Bob Brown and inked by Lew Gantz, this never-reprinted story from St John's Atom-Age Combat #5 (1952) was typical of the "Hell, we can handle any damn invaders!" attitude we Americans had back in the day!

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Taylor History of Comics
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Friday Fun / Baker Reading Room CANTEEN KATE vs The Comics Code Authority!

Besides Romance Comics and Scantily-Clad Heroines like Phantom Lady & Rulah... 

...pioneering Black comic book artist Matt Baker also did a military humor strip featuring (what else) a scantly-clad, beautiful WAC (Womens' Army Corps) officer assigned to run a canteen at a US military base not far from the front lines in Korea!

(She actually encountered North Koreans in a couple of tales)

The following, "Foxhole Floozie", appeared in St John's Fightin' Marines #7 (1952), where Kate's strip appeared in almost every issue from #2 to #12...while she also had her own comic book!

Straightforward, fun story with a little harmless cheesecake thrown in, illustrated by a master of the craft!

However...

When Charlton Comics bought out St John Publishing's inventory and began reprinting it, the brand-new Comics Code Authority literally got its' panties in a bunch, insisting on some ridiculous changes in the retelling of this tale in Charlton's Fightin' Marines #17 (1956)

Start with putting a bra/bathing suit top on Kate, and putting a boulder over her shapely legs in the opening panel and removing the story's title "Foxhole Floozie"!

Plus, throughout the tale, her tasteful shorts are replaced with mid-calf length Capri pants, and there's an olive-drab t-shirt under her uniform shirt, covering her cleavage!

One additional point...

Usually, when Charlton, Avon, and other publishers modified previously-published art to conform to the Comic Code's demands, they usually did it only to the black plate art, but, to save money, not to the existing cyan, magenta, and yellow plates!
Here, the reprint is totally-recolored!
Plus the retouching is so clean that it looks like the original artist, Matt Baker did it himself!
Did Charlton have the original art along with photostats and photo negatives, and asked Baker (who was doing freelance work for Charlton) do the reworking himself?
In truth, it's the sort of thing I'd expect editor Dick Giordano to do!

But, sadly, we'll never know the answer, since all involved parties are no longer on this mortal coil!

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Matt Baker

Art of Glamour

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