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Post by beccabear67 on Mar 20, 2020 0:22:38 GMT -5
I didn't get any others until I got a couple of polybagged three packs of the Modern Comics reprints (though I had no idea until much later these were Charlton comics), including some Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, Judo Master, Doomsday +1, Vengeance Squad and this issue of Ghostly Haunts which always creeped me out...  Other than those, I never really got any Charlton books until I started going to conventions and exploring war and horror comics. Now I have a bunch, but haven't really completed any significant runs or series. -M I bought loads of those 3 in a bag Modern reprints, but I never knew there were Doomsday +1 Moderns... I actually had that Ghostly Haunts in both Modern and original Charlton version, same with the E-man where I first encountered the character in Modern E-man #1 & 3. I remember Peacemaker #1 & 2, Haunted Love #1 and a couple of Hercules and Dr. Graves... but best of all was Captain Atom #85! I think it was some kind of clearance thing and if I got one issue twice I just traded the extra off for something at school. They all seemed to have the same add for pewter Star Wars pendants in them. Later on I got kind of deep into getting back copies of mid '70s Charltons, even a couple of the CPL/Bob Latyon edited Charlton Bullseye magazine (which had the unpublished Doomsday +1 #7, an E-man, maybe #11?... oh and an amazing Alex Toth Question story with cover!) I also had Space:1999, Emergency and Bionic Woman, and then the '80s Charlton Bullseye comic. I thought I understand Charlton got sort of fan work by Dan Reed, Gary Kato, Tim Fuller and Larry Houston for that for free, they were just happy to get published or something? I thought it was great at the time and got it at the corner shop like any 'real' comic (also Captain Canuck) and even wrote a fan letter each to Gary Kato and to Larry Houston which got replies... so Charlton forwarded things. I might've been one of the few real readers excited by that title and got every one of them as they came out. It may've been just about when I first knew comics shops existed. |
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Post by Cei-U! on Mar 20, 2020 0:26:34 GMT -5
The first Charlton comic I ever saw was an issue of Captain Atom. It was sitting in a barber shop, the proprietor of which had just moved to Washington from the East Coast. I was 8. I wouldn't see another one until college, when a buddy from California gave me a few Don Newton issues of Phantom. For some reason, the company's many titles never seemed to make it to Tacoma.
Today, I own a few copies of Captain Atom, Blue Beetle, and Peacemaker, as well as single issues of Gorgo (a gift from Tom Orzechowski), E-Man, and Thunderbolt. but I have electronic copies of all of Charlton's super-hero and giant monster titles, as well as my most recent acquisition, every issue of the line's many westerns. None of them are earthshaking, but I enjoy the artwork by Ditko, Newton, Glanzman, Morisi, Boyette, and primordial Byrne (not that ever have time to rad them), It'll never be my favorite publishing house (it wouldn't even make my Top Ten), but I'm glad for what I have nonetheless.
Cei-U!
I summon the Connecticut connection!
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Post by beccabear67 on Mar 20, 2020 0:27:09 GMT -5
the lettering was often ugly (especially that typewritten font). I hated that lettering too, also didn't like the non-Kurtzman E.C. comics' lettering much better (I think that was a stencil thing while Charlton had some kind of special type-writer that did theirs). I don't know if it's common knowledge now or not, but Dick Giordano mentioned his wife did a lot of that mechanical type-lettering on some kind of machine for Charlton for years. |
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Post by beccabear67 on Mar 20, 2020 0:32:56 GMT -5
I found loads of '60s Kongas and Konga's Revenge comics in a plain seeming used bookshop once and bought all I could. Maybe someone had been through before me and taken all the other Ditko comics...  I don't know if I never noticed them, or if romance comics were off in some separate area from the other comics, but I swear I barely knew there were any such comics with Love in most of the titles in the '70s to early '80s. Mad, Crazy and Cracked were in their own space, the B&W Marvel, Charlton and Warren mags too which I mostly ignored (too 'spensive) may or may not be near them. Heavy Metal and eventually Epic seemed to be their own micro-segment near the National Lampoon (also too 'spensive). |
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Post by electricmastro on Mar 20, 2020 1:54:31 GMT -5
primordial Byrne (not that ever have time to rad them) John Byrne only did work for Charlton for about three or four years, so he didn’t particularly leave that big of a mark there. He apparently did this cover for The Many Ghosts of Dr. Graves #54 (December, 1975) though:  |
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Post by brutalis on Mar 20, 2020 8:06:09 GMT -5
I give props to Charlton in the War and Western goodness. Where Marvel and DC were letting their Western and War comics die the slow death it was Charlton cranking them out like crazy. I am finding some really interesting and different takes in stories from titles like Attack, Submarine Attack, Army Attack, War, War Heroes, Army War Heroes, Marine War Heroes, Navy War Heroes, War and Attack, Fightin' Navy, Fightin' Army, Fightin' Marines, Fightin' Airforce, US Airforce, Battlefield Action, Outlaws of the West, Texas Rangers, Billy the Kid and Cheyenne Kid. The stories and ideas take on a more meaningful resonance as they attempt to deliver alternatives to Marvel/DC with more history and humanity driven concepts at times. Sometimes a 3 -5 page story hits just the right emotional tone touching and I have found many a story within Charlton that shows the opposing enemy are/were just as human and caring as the "good guys" and not ALL involved who were considered as enemies are/were evil.
And I find as I read more and more of the Charlton comics that the artists hold a charm of their own for me. Where others might deem their efforts more simplistic or of a lesser quality, I instead find them quite fresh, clean and enjoyable in a different way from the more well known artists of DC and Marvel. Charlton was home to folks like Bill Molno, Vince Alascia, Rocco Mostroserio, Charles Nicholas, Ken Battlefield, Maurice Whitman, Tony Tallarico, Pete Morisi and where Sam Glanzman was allowed to grow and build a following.
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Post by adamwarlock2099 on Mar 20, 2020 9:20:18 GMT -5
Tom Sutton, starting with Ghostly Haunts #41, is why I own as many Charlton comics as I do. His artwork is amazing, despite his tragic, but relateble life.
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Post by electricmastro on Mar 20, 2020 13:53:26 GMT -5
I give props to Charlton in the War and Western goodness. Where Marvel and DC were letting their Western and War comics die the slow death it was Charlton cranking them out like crazy. I am finding some really interesting and different takes in stories from titles like Attack, Submarine Attack, Army Attack, War, War Heroes, Army War Heroes, Marine War Heroes, Navy War Heroes, War and Attack, Fightin' Navy, Fightin' Army, Fightin' Marines, Fightin' Airforce, US Airforce, Battlefield Action, Outlaws of the West, Texas Rangers, Billy the Kid and Cheyenne Kid. The stories and ideas take on a more meaningful resonance as they attempt to deliver alternatives to Marvel/DC with more history and humanity driven concepts at times. Sometimes a 3 -5 page story hits just the right emotional tone touching and I have found many a story within Charlton that shows the opposing enemy are/were just as human and caring as the "good guys" and not ALL involved who were considered as enemies are/were evil. And I find as I read more and more of the Charlton comics that the artists hold a charm of their own for me. Where others might deem their efforts more simplistic or of a lesser quality, I instead find them quite fresh, clean and enjoyable in a different way from the more well known artists of DC and Marvel. Charlton was home to folks like Bill Molno, Vince Alascia, Rocco Mostroserio, Charles Nicholas, Ken Battlefield, Maurice Whitman, Tony Tallarico, Pete Morisi and where Sam Glanzman was allowed to grow and build a following. Pat Boyette’s war covers from 75-76 are definitely of note: Fightin’ Army:      Fightin’ Marines:         War:     |
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Post by nerdygirl905 on Mar 20, 2020 13:56:33 GMT -5
The new Blue Beetle stuff was great, but it took like, ten issues before knowing what happened to the previous one, and the pacing of the stories were all horrible. Of course, I only read the first Captain Atom backups and the first series, so I have no idea if it improves later on.
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Crimebuster
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Post by Crimebuster on Mar 20, 2020 14:24:53 GMT -5
Really dig that Fightin' Army 126 cover by Boyette!
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Crimebuster
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Post by Crimebuster on Mar 20, 2020 14:40:09 GMT -5
Here are some of the more daring Charlton romance covers from the Silver and early Bronze Age from my collection - these three all reference or hint at drug use. The first slips past the code by putting "aspirin" on the bottle, but it's obviously meant to look like a suicide attempt! The story inside is really bogus - the guy finds her and the pill bottle and freaks out, and she just wakes up because she was only taking a nap. A total manipulative misdirect. The second one, you can see people toking up in the bottom left - I'm sure Charlton got this through since it could be cigarettes, but seriously, it's not. And the third one they said to hell with it and just flat out said it's about drugs right in the text! You're not going to see DC doing any of this stuff.    |
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Post by electricmastro on Mar 20, 2020 15:53:27 GMT -5
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Post by electricmastro on Mar 20, 2020 16:08:09 GMT -5
The first slips past the code by putting "aspirin" on the bottle, but it's obviously meant to look like a suicide attempt! The story inside is really bogus - the guy finds her and the pill bottle and freaks out, and she just wakes up because she was only taking a nap. A total manipulative misdirect. I had actually found that there were quite a number of suicide-related romance stories from the pre-code days. At least one Charlton did is this one from True Life Secrets #13 (May, 1953):     |
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Crimebuster
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Post by Crimebuster on Mar 20, 2020 16:44:02 GMT -5
Another artist of interest who worked at Charlton is the great Jose Luis Garcia Lopez, who did some work for the company prior to moving to DC. My favorite of his Charlton covers, though, is actually a much later reprint - the original had a bunch of obtrusive text boxes marring it, but the later reprinted version is clean and beautiful. My copy:  |
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Post by electricmastro on Mar 20, 2020 20:11:00 GMT -5
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