Of Comics & Snake Oil Salesmen

[Shadow]

Within the past two years I've started collecting comics again. Yes, I know, a backslide. A nasty habit I thought I'd broken myself of. Well, I have actually. No longer do I buy overpriced NEW comics with two page spread artwork to pad space because they want to take a two issue (at best) storyline and draw it out into six issues. Nope, the comic companies would shrivel and die if they depended on me.

What I am collecting is old '70s DC Horror, Weird Western Tales, and Jonah Hex. Beautiful artwork, fantastic stories that usually conclude in one issue, and if I end up paying $3.-$5. dollars an issue I'm no worse than if I was buying the totally unsatisfying new stuff.

I discovered an added bonus is the advertisements like this one:



WOW! For only a dollar! Of course the ad is designed to lure in a 7-9 year old kid, but think of those hours of imagination it brought to many.

Check the link here for more about these giants that once stalked the comic pages.

At the link there's mention of this other character.



Sure, in the end he's just a balloon and a plastic sheet on a fishing wire, but what were you really expecting?

After seeing so many of these ads, of course it lead to the research above, and there were many other tales of advertised rocket ships and submarines which turned out to be decorated cardboard boxes. One of my favorites was the tale of the log cabin which, in the end, turned out to be a plastic tent designed to go over a card table.

This research made me wonder if some of these things were even still available. Taking inflation into consideration you can actually still get this stuff. Frankentstein is more like $8. now but that's to be expected.

You can find him and this whole world of imagination and nostalgia here at http://www.thelandofsecrets.com/

I guess in these times where the toys practically do everything for the kids, and everything requires batteries, it's nice to see these comic book snake oil salesmen weaving their tales and selling the stuff dreams are made of.

~Shadow

[SpaceMonkey]

Within the past two years I've started collecting comics again. Yes, I know, a backslide. A nasty habit I thought I'd broken myself of. Well, I have actually. No longer do I buy overpriced NEW comics with two page spread artwork to pad space because they want to take a two issue (at best) storyline and draw it out into six issues. Nope, the comic companies would shrivel and die if they depended on me.

What I am collecting is old '70s DC Horror, Weird Western Tales, and Jonah Hex. Beautiful artwork, fantastic stories that usually conclude in one issue, and if I end up paying $3.-$5. dollars an issue I'm no worse than if I was buying the totally unsatisfying new stuff.

I discovered an added bonus is the advertisements like this one:



WOW! For only a dollar! Of course the ad is designed to lure in a 7-9 year old kid, but think of those hours of imagination it brought to many.

Check the link here for more about these giants that once stalked the comic pages.

At the link there's mention of this other character.



Sure, in the end he's just a balloon and a plastic sheet on a fishing wire, but what were you really expecting?

After seeing so many of these ads, of course it lead to the research above, and there were many other tales of advertised rocket ships and submarines which turned out to be decorated cardboard boxes. One of my favorites was the tale of the log cabin which, in the end, turned out to be a plastic tent designed to go over a card table.

This research made me wonder if some of these things were even still available. Taking inflation into consideration you can actually still get this stuff. Frankentstein is more like $8. now but that's to be expected.

You can find him and this whole world of imagination and nostalgia here at http://www.thelandofsecrets.com/

I guess in these times where the toys practically do everything for the kids, and everything requires batteries, it's nice to see these comic book snake oil salesmen weaving their tales and selling the stuff dreams are made of.

~Shadow

Ohhhh, yeah.. I love those nostalgic comic ads!  I used a pic of a gorilla mask from one of those ads, as my avatar for the longest time.


This one, in fact:




Your link has a short film called 'Flip' --- that was created by a guy who runs the 'secret fun spot' and 'secret fun blog' which are loaded with those kinds of nostalgic ads & creepy ephemera from childhood past:

http://www.secretfunspot.com/

http://secretfunspot.blogspot.com/


Interesting that they used his movie, but didn't link to his blog.. but I digress...

Anyway, it was on the secret fun blog, that the real gorilla mask obtainable from that ad was revealed recently:

[FreakCentral]

Ha ha, I kind of want that giant Frankenstein's Monster.

[SpaceMonkey]

Ha ha, I kind of want that giant Frankenstein's Monster.

http://www.cardboardpeople.com.au/detail.asp?pid=195&cid=133,91,64

Hmmm... close, but no cigar.


Ahhh.. but caveat emptor, my freaky friend:

http://homepage.mac.com/rmansfield/thislamp/files/878a81996a3919aaed43a6983de32c3f-177.html
"Sadly, the Monster Wasn't Real"

[FreakCentral]

Ha ha, Spacey. I'm actually kind of handy. If I wanna make a life-sized Frankenstein I would make it out of a silicone resin and get an old suit from the thrift shop and beat it up a bit... I'd make the real deal for about $80 instead of spending a dollar for a sheet of plastic or cardboard... lol

[Shadow]

Oh yeah! Secret Fun Spot is definitely a favorite, Space! I discovered it a few years back when I was hunting for this reproduction Halloween decoration Skeleton to go with this very '60s witch.

Now ain't they a fun pair? Still haven't found the Skeleton yet.

I've really gotten into vintage Halloween decorations in the past couple of years. The Beistle company's products in particular. Considering the prices their originals fetch, I think everyone has discovered them. Here's a good link on the history of this over 100 year old Halloween decoration manufacturer: 

http://www.spookshows.com/beistle/beistle.htm

Watching movies like the original Halloween 1, 2 and 3, and an old "lite" Halloween favorite, The Midnight Hour, I'm surprised at how much paper Halloween decorations played into the set dressings. Orange and black honeycomb tissue paper balls and streamers everywhere! You just don't see that stuff in stores or people using it anymore. I did find a store online that sells that sort of stuff cheap--- http://www.partycheap.com

I can understand the move toward more prop-like Halloween decorations but considering the quality of some of it, I'd much rather have the Beistle jointed paper skeleton, that has been in production since the 1930s, on display instead of a garish glitter covered plastic skeleton from Target.

I think it's funny how Rob Zombie is also a collector of vintage Halloween decorations. The party decorations in his version of Halloween 2 were sadly the best thing about that movie. Gotta hand it to him for dressing his set with them though.

~Shadow

[MondoStrange]

Great minds think alike. I totally remember these comics and the Captain Company ads for masks. I collect this stuff too! Love it!