Saturday, 12 January 2019

Exploding Bridges Actually Blow Apart Right Off The River



Yes indeed, that's what it says in one of the adverts within a 1974 Marvel Comic published in New York, USA. It's from my copy of The Man-Thing!, a title that I was very fond of when I was around 12/13 years old. Sadly the issue itself is a bit battered and it's incomplete (thus worthless in the collectors market) - so before slinging it in the recycle bin, I thought I'd take a last loving look.

I had forgotten just how weird some of those small ads actually were. Of course there's the classics like the Hypno-Coin and Be Taller in a few weeks, but the Imported Birds for hunting, Repro German Helmets sold by a company calling themselves 'Adolf's', and the Hypnotizing TV Set are extreme oddities that makes me wonder just what kind of advertising control was going on at Marvel back in the 70s?

However if I could play the game of 'what if we could still send off for this stuff?' - I definitely want the Crazy World Ain't It T-Shirt!















By the way, I couldn't resist finding a complete edition of The Man-Thing #9 -  and today I picked up a copy for just £1.50 in the annual half price sale at the excellent Gosh! comic shop in central London...I still really dig Mike Ploog's superb artwork.