COMIC BOOK COVER GALLERY: Golden Age reprints acquired in the '60s, '70s, and '80s

                         

I started reading comic books in 1965, and became obsessed with them in 1966, when the Batman TV series sparked a passion that has not dimmed in decades since. I was five years old in '65, six in '66. I loved new comic books. I loved old comic books. Any story you ain't read is a new story.

As I wrote here, it's possible that my first Batman comic book wasn't a comic book at all, but a Signet paperback collection reprinting some older Batman adventures. Almost all of these stories were originally printed in the 1950s, but the book's very first story was a reprint from 1940: The origin of Batman--Who he is and how he came to be!--restructured from its appearance in Batman # 1. 

This was my first exposure to a story from comics' Golden Age, the 1930s and 1940s. As a kid in '66, pop culture from previous decades was an ever-present part of entertainment, especially on TV, where one could see old movies, old cartoons, even chapters of old Flash Gordon movie serials. Tarzan. Popeye. Bugs Bunny. Any story you ain't read is a new story.

As an adolescent and young teen in the early '70s, I developed a specific interest in Charlie Chaplin, the Marx Brothers, old radio, old pulp heroes like the Shadow, the Avenger, and Doc Savage, old movie serials like the 1943 Batman and 1941's Adventures Of Captain Marvel, and in Golden Age superhero comics. Any story you ain't read, man. My timing was excellent, as this period saw an explosion of Golden Age reprints, both in regular comic books and in hardcover comics collections. This week's cover gallery celebrates just a few of the many, many Golden Age reprints I acquired and enjoyed in the '60s, '70s, and '80s.

We'll be sticking exclusively to the '60s-'80s era of acquisition I've established for these galleries. Today's selection includes books I bought new, back issues I acquired after the fact (but within the timeline), and B-stock contraband originally purchased without their covers. As always: These aren't actual photos of comics in my collection (except for the photo of my much-loved Signet Batman paperback up top). But I did have each and every one of 'em at some point in time.

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I compiled a various-artists tribute album called Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes, and it's pretty damned good; you can read about it here and order it here. My new book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) is now available, and you can order an autographed copy here. You can still get my previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books, OR an autographed copy here. If you like the books, please consider leaving a rating and/or review at the usual online resources.

This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. You can read about our history here.