Archie's Girls Betty and Veronica, no. 23
As the cover to this issue makes clear, <em>Archie's Girls Betty and Veronica</em> focuses on the romantic high-school shenanigans between the blonde girl-next-door Betty Cooper, the brunette Veronica Lodge, daughter of the wealthiest family in Riverdale, and the redheaded typical teenager Archie Andrews. Archie first appeared in 1941, in <em>Pep Comics #22</em>, and the series <em>Archie</em> began a year later in 1942. <em>Archie's Girls Betty and Veronica</em> was the second <em>Archie</em> spin-off series, beginning in 1950, one year after <em>Archie's Pal Jughead</em>. As Bart Beaty notes, "while Archie comics were always popular with a young female audience, [<em>Archie's Girls Betty and Veronica</em>] heightened that appeal with its emphasis on the female costars, and it quickly emerged as the second-most-popular title behind Archie, averaging well over three hundred thousand copies sold per month" by the 1960s (14). (Reference: Bart Beaty, <em>Twelve-Cent Archie</em>. New Brunswick: Rutgers UP, 2015.)
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=48&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Stephen+Neil+Cooper+Synchronic+Comic+Book+Collection%2C+CARCSC-055">Stephen Neil Cooper Synchronic Comic Book Collection, CARCSC-055</a>
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Black Cat Mystery, no. 57
<em>Black Cat</em> went through a number of title changes from its launch in 1946 to its eventual end in 1963. Initially a title named after the "Black Cat," a stunt woman and actress named Linda Turner who dons a costume to fight crime, the series would change formats to a Western, horror, and mystery title. Perhaps in response to the 1954 Comics Code, this issue boasts a "NEW DESIGN in mystery." It moves away from the scantily-clad heroine of the series, singled out in Fredric Wertham's <em>Seduction of the Innocent</em> as one of the negative influences on the youth of America because of Black Cat's penchant for hand-to-hand combat. This revised <em>Black Cat</em> title features suspense and science fiction stories. The cover references "20th Century Man," a story in this issue that is "told in the format of a television show. The story panels become your TV screen and the suspense of its awful problems comes to life before your eyes." Notably, the cover to this issue is pencilled and inked by famed comics artist Jack Kirby, co-creator of the Avengers, Captain America, the X-Men, and much more. (Reference: Harry Mendryk, "Harvey Horror and Science Fiction: Black Cat Mystery #57," Jack Kirby Museum, 12 April 2012. http://kirbymuseum.org/blogs/simonandkirby/archives/4373 )
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=48&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Stephen+Neil+Cooper+Synchronic+Comic+Book+Collection%2C+CARCSC-055">Stephen Neil Cooper Synchronic Comic Book Collection, CARCSC-055</a>
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Editor: Harvey, Leon H. (Leon Harvey), 1901-
Penciler & Inker: Kirby, Jack
Letterer: Rosen, Joe
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Black Knight, no. 5
Wielding an ebony blade forged by Merlin, the Black Knight was created by Stan Lee and Joe Maneely in this Atlas Comics title, which only ran for five issues. Taking place during the reign of King Arthur, the comic blends medieval romance with ideas more commonly associated with superheroes. When not in the Black Knight armor, the main character masquerades as the cowardly Sir Percy of Scandia. A heroic descendant of this Black Knight character would be introduced in Marvel's <em>The Avengers</em> #48 (1968). The cover of this issue was drawn by Joe Maneely, who died in 1958 at the age of 32. Stan Lee remarked that "he would have been another Jack Kirby . . . the best you could imagine." (Reference: "Joe Maneely," Lambiek Comiclopedia, 30 Jan. 2017. https://www.lambiek.net/artists/m/maneely_joe.htm )
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=48&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Stephen+Neil+Cooper+Synchronic+Comic+Book+Collection%2C+CARCSC-055">Stephen Neil Cooper Synchronic Comic Book Collection, CARCSC-055</a>
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<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Apr+1956">Apr 1956</a>
Lee, Stan, 1922-2018 (Editor)
Penciler & Inker: Maneely, Joe, 1926-1958
Colorist: Goldberg, Stan
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Detective Comics, no. 230
This issue of DC’s long-running <em>Detective Comics</em> series reintroduces the Mad Hatter, a Batman villain who first appeared in the 1940s. As the Mad Hatter’s villainous ambition here makes clear—he wants to add Batman’s signature cowl to his collection of hats—the villains of the “Silver Age” of comic books are “wacky conjurors, nothing more, with no menace or violence about them” (242). This anthology comic also contains a story featuring the “Martian Manhunter,” another mainstay of DC’s superhero universe. (Reference: Andy Medhurst, “Batman, Deviance, and Camp,” <em>The Superhero Reader</em>, ed. Charles Hatfield, Jeet Heer, and Kent Worcester. Jackson: UP of Mississippi, 2013. 237-251.)
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=48&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Stephen+Neil+Cooper+Synchronic+Comic+Book+Collection%2C+CARCSC-055">Stephen Neil Cooper Synchronic Comic Book Collection, CARCSC-055</a>
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Ellsworth, Whitney, 1908-1980 (Editor)
Schiff, Jack (Editor)
Mortimer, Win (Penciler)
Roussos, George, 1915-2000 (Inker)
Schnapp, Ira (Letterer)
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First Romance, no. 39
According to Michelle Nolan, romance comics saturated the newsstands in 1950, resulting in "the Love Glut. In 1950, publishers kissed off no fewer than 117 of 147 romance titles" (62). Harvey's <em>First Romance</em> was one of the titles to survive. This particular issue of <em>First Romance</em> reprints stories of heartbreak and true love from First Romance #22 (1953), along with features like "Clothing Closeups," which instructs readers in fashion conventions, such as "Concealment is better than revealment!" While many genre comics are overtly fictional, this romance comic opens with a statement that its first story, "Heartbreak in Hollywood," is "dramatically, sensationally TRUE!" (Reference: Michelle Nolan, <em>Love on the Racks: A History of American Romance Comics</em>. Jefferson: McFarland, 2008.)
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=48&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Stephen+Neil+Cooper+Synchronic+Comic+Book+Collection%2C+CARCSC-055">Stephen Neil Cooper Synchronic Comic Book Collection, CARCSC-055</a>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=45&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Harvey">Harvey</a>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Apr+1956">Apr 1956</a>
Harvey, Leon H. (Leon Harvey), 1901- (Editor)
Avison, Al, 1920-1984 (Penciler & Inker)
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Forbidden Worlds, no. 42
One of American Comics Group's longest-running titles, <em>Forbidden Worlds</em> featured tales of alien visitors from other planets, time travel, and other strange happenings. Perhaps most notable about this issue is its cover, by ACG artist Ogden Whitney. Whitney would go on to create the character Herbie, sometimes known as the superhero Fat Fury, in the pages of <em>Forbidden Worlds</em>, eventually resulting in the character's own series in the 1960s. As Dan Nadel notes, Whitney developed a curiously familiar yet emblematic art style: "Every boss is bald and plump and chomps a cigar, every businessman looks like Rock Hudson, and every office and home is straight out of the Sears catalog." This makes the strange events on the cover even more uncanny, as they seem to be happening to such typical, ordinary figures. (Reference: Dan Nadel, "Sucker Punch," <em>Bookforum</em> (Feb/Mar 2009). https://www.bookforum.com/print/1505/-3291)
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=48&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Stephen+Neil+Cooper+Synchronic+Comic+Book+Collection%2C+CARCSC-055">Stephen Neil Cooper Synchronic Comic Book Collection, CARCSC-055</a>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=45&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=ACG">ACG</a>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Apr+1956">Apr 1956</a>
Hughes, Richard E., 1909-1974 (Editor)
Whitney, Ogden, 1918- (Penciler & Inker)
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Gunsmoke Western, no. 34
As they were on television and in cinema, Western were quite popular in 1950s comics. This issue of <em>Gunsmoke Western</em> features two recurring Western heroes, Kid Colt and Billy Buckskin. While Billy Buckskin would quickly fade out of Atlas's Western titles, Kid Colt was a mainstay along with Atlas's other "kid" Western heroes, Rawhide Kid and Two-Gun Kid. The <em>Kid Colt Outlaw</em> series ran 225 issues from 1948 to 1979, during which Atlas Comics changed its name to the now more familiar Marvel Comics. The cover of this issue is drawn by John Severin who, along with his sister Marie Severin, worked in the comic book industry from the 1940s to the 2000s.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=48&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Stephen+Neil+Cooper+Synchronic+Comic+Book+Collection%2C+CARCSC-055">Stephen Neil Cooper Synchronic Comic Book Collection, CARCSC-055</a>
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Lee, Stan, 1922-2018 (Editor)
Severin, John (Penciler & Inker)
Goldberg, Stan (Colorist)
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Little Archie, no. 1
This Archie Comics series was initially written and penciled by Bob Bolling, with inks by Bob White, and it would be published with some name changes until 1983. Featuring child versions of the teenage Archie characters, this first issues of the series draws on classic Archie themes, such as romance and driving, but puts a childish and slapstick-driven spin on them. In later years, the series would take shift to spookier subject matter, focusing less on romance and more on horror. As Bart Beaty notes, "<em>Little Archie</em> was considerably darker than anything else that Archie Comics published [in the 1960s], ironic given the fact that the title seemed intended for readers who were presumed to be too young for the regular series" (170). (Reference: Bart Beaty, <em>Twelve-Cent Archie</em>. New Brunswick: Rutgers UP, 2015.)
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=48&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Stephen+Neil+Cooper+Synchronic+Comic+Book+Collection%2C+CARCSC-055">Stephen Neil Cooper Synchronic Comic Book Collection, CARCSC-055</a>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=45&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Archie">Archie</a>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Apr+1956">Apr 1956</a>
Shorten, Harry (Editor)
Bolling, Bob (Penciler)
White, Bob (Inker)
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Little Lotta, no. 3
Little Lotta Plump was one of Harvey Comics' consistent characters, along with Little Audrey, Little Dot, and Richie Rich. Much of the humor in Little Lotta's comic book adventures comes from the incredible strength that she gets from eating massive amounts of food, as demonstrated on this issue's cover. Lotta's superhuman ability to eat is put to the test in this issue, when she dreams that she has eaten an entire whale, thus spoiling her appetite.
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=48&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Stephen+Neil+Cooper+Synchronic+Comic+Book+Collection%2C+CARCSC-055">Stephen Neil Cooper Synchronic Comic Book Collection, CARCSC-055</a>
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<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Mar+1956">Mar 1956</a>
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Lorna, the Jungle Girl, no. 18
This jungle adventure comic features a female version of Tarzan, raised in the African jungle and accompanied by her sidekick, a chimpanzee named Mikki. On this cover, two artist's signatures are visible on a rock, "Colletta and Williamson." Vince Colletta and Al Williamson worked as artists for Atlas Comics in the mid-to-late 1950s, after the implementation of the Comics Code Authority. Catherine Jurca has argued that Edgar Rice Burrough's 1912 <em>Tarzan of the Apes</em> is preoccupied with domesticity. As she argues, Tarzan's major appeal in the novel is his "natural grace as a homemaker," as he transforms the jungle into the symbolic equivalent of a suburb (41). Lorna is similarly committed to maintaining what she describes as "the law of the jungle," which in fact resembles 1950s gender, racial, and social norms. (Reference: Catherine Jurca, <em>White Diaspora: The Suburb and the Twentieth-Century American Novel</em>. Princeton: Princeton UP, 2001.)
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=48&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Stephen+Neil+Cooper+Synchronic+Comic+Book+Collection%2C+CARCSC-055">Stephen Neil Cooper Synchronic Comic Book Collection, CARCSC-055</a>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=45&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Atlas">Atlas</a>
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=Mar+1956">Mar 1956</a>
Lee, Stan, 1922-2018 (Editor)
Williamson, Al (Penciler)
Colletta, Vince (Penciler & Inker)
Goldberg, Stan (Colorist)
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