Reading Room JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY "Orogo!! The Nightmare from Outer Space!!"

Behind this Jack Kirby-penciled/Don Heck-inked splash...

...lurks a mystery. which we'll delve into after you read the story!

When this Stan Lee-scripted, Don Heck-illustrated (except for the splash) tale was reprinted in Marvel's Fantasy Masterpieces #2 (1967), the cover played-up Heck's Cyclopean robot (and Dashin' Don himself)...

...but when it was first published in Atlas' Journey into Mystery #57 (1960)...

...and reprinted a second time in Marvel's Where Monsters Dwell #12 (1971)...

...it used the original Kirby cover that seems to be a reverse-angle of the splash page above and shows a radically-different Orogo with two eyes!

Did editor/art director Stan the Man have The King do the cover and splash and then pass the rest of the story to Heck to finish,...but, for whatever reason, didn't give Dashing Don the cover as reference for Orogo, so Heck came up with his own version of the robot...with only one eye?

There are several Atlas-era monster stories where Kirby would do splashes, then another artist would complete the tale.

Bookmark us and keep an eye out as we attempt to solve the half century-old mystery....

Monday RUSSKIE Madness JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY "Propaganda"

Today is "Victory Day" in Russia, and since Vladimir Putin will, no doubt, use...

...to claim a non-existent victory in Ukraine, this never-reprinted tale from sixty years ago about using "alternative facts" seems as timely as ever!

Note: because of racial stereotypes common to the era of publication, this may be NSFW!

This story from Atlas' Journey into Mystery #80 (1962) by plotter Stan Lee, scripter Larry Lieber, penciler Jack Kirby, and inker Dick Ayers, is a reworking of an earlier story, also called "Propaganda", from Atlas' Uncanny Tales V1N9 (1953). That one was reprinted in Marvel's Uncanny Tales V2N1 (1973) and you'll be seeing it on our "brother" RetroBlog, Seduction of the Innocent, today!

In the meantime, here's a special treat...scans of the complete original art for this tale!

Enjoy!

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Secret History of Marvel Comics:

Jack Kirby and the Moonlighting Artists at Martin Goodman's Empire

Holiday Reading Room EVERY DAY IS A HOLLY DAY "Mother's Day"

Ever wonder why Mother's Day is when it is...or even why it is?

Oddly, there's no entry in this comic for Father's Day!

(Perhaps because Father's Day wasn't made an official American holiday until 1972, decades after this comic was published in 1956!)

Why is this comic entitled "Every Day is a Holly Day" instead of "Every Day is a Holiday"?

Because it was given away to kids by grocers who sold Holly Sugar!

Illustrated by John Rosenberger, it's a unique pamphlet covering a number of American holidays, including both Lincoln and Washington's Birthdays (before they were combined into "Presidents' Day"), Flag Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and a couple of holidays we've largely abandoned...Pan-American Day and American Indian Day!

We'll be presenting the other chapters on the dates they fall upon.

Watch for them!

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Cartoon History of the United States

Space Hero Saturdays CAPTAIN ROCKET "Monstroids of the Underworld"

The final (in more ways than one) Captain Rocket comic tale...

...is not an outer space adventure, but an inner space one!

We had an atomic war in 1962...and nobody told us?

And Cap's adventures take place eons (or many millions of years) from now?

Writer/artist Harry Harrison handled the creative chores of the never-reprinted final story from PL's Captain Rocket #1 (1951), as he did every other story in this book.

Captain Rocket didn't have a second issue, and the character never reappeared, though his name has been appropriated for video games and halloween costumes for a totally-different character!

Little is known about PL Publishing, one of the least successful comic publishers in history, lasting less than a year and producing only eight titles, none of which ran more than three issues!
BTW, there was a third Captain Rocket story in that issue...but it was a text feature based on the cover!
We ran it last year, and you can read it HERE!

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Taylor Illustrated History

Science Fiction Comics 

Friday Fun CRAZY "Spencer the Censor"

With all the recent discussions regarding on-line censorship...

...we have to ask; what sort of person actually does the censoring?

Sadly under-appreciated comics creator Howie Post illustrated (and likely scripted) this never-reprinted feature from Atlas' Crazy V1N5 (1955)

(Note: The "V1" is because this was the first of Atlas/Marvel's attempts to use the title "Crazy" to match EC's MAD, either in color comic or b/w magazine form!

They tried again in the early 1973 with another short-lived color comic which reprinted material from Not Brand Ecch, but finally succeed with a b/w magazine which ran for 94 issues from late 1973 to late 1983.

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