*Magazines & Books About Vintage US Comics: Following the demise of legendary artist/writer Jack Kirby in 1994, many print tributes were issued to commemorate his life and works. One such was Jack Kirby Collector, which started humbly as a black & white fanzine but was taken up by Twomorrows into a slick ‘prozine’ which continues to this day. Our stock of Jack Kirby Collector has been enhanced by more than 40 issues, in numbers ranging from #6 to #74, all averaging VF/NM. In addition, we have the first paperback volume of the Collected Jack Kirby Collector VF £20, as well as a small selection of the lesser-known companion Jack Kirby Quarterly, which began as a black and white fanzine in the UK, but was taken up by Greg Theakston’s Pure Imagination for US distribution.

*Vintage UK/Australian Reprints of US Material: A whole box-full of goodies freshly added to this category, including Casey Ruggles, Crime Patrol, Donald Duck, Fantastic Tales, a large run of Gold Token Super Mag, Justice Traps The Guilty, Mr District Attorney, Police Comics, Race For The Moon, a New Zealand Rip Kirby, World Distributors’ Movie Classics (Searchers, Sharkfighters, Wings Of Eagles) and WD Western Classic.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Comics:  In 1976, the staid world of British comics was rocked by the advent of Action, a brutal weekly (by the standards of the day), where villains, including Nazis and man-eating sharks, were the heroes. Hugely popular and hugely controversial, we have the first three issues back in stock: issue #1 is only FA, complete but with a significant lower cover tear, at £20; issue #2 is VG at £20 and issue #3, unlike its chums, comes with the original free gift – 16 Soccer Super Stars of Britain Trading Cards, still in the pack/wallet (pictured)! The comic is Fine, and the Free Gift of packet plus cards, though opened, is also Fine – comic and gift combo on sale at £50. SORRY, THESE HAVE NOW SOLD

*Girls’ Picture Libraries: Better remembered for its long line of war-themed picture libraries, Pearson did occasionally venture into the softer side of things, and from 1965, we have an unusual example: Heart Beat #1, an extra-tall romantic picture library, a full 12″ in height, though no wider than the standard PL. This extra height was no doubt intended to make the series stand out at the newsagent’s, but we suspect that in reality, like the Giant War Picture Libraries, it simply meant it was a bugger to display and got mangled and mishandled, if the shops bothered to put it out at all. We suspect few survive, and certainly we had never heard of it until we acquired this copy. We have no idea how many further issues – if any – there were. Interior artwork is the same sophisticated European style seen in many romantic comics of the day, with three separate tales – ‘Guilty Secret’, ‘Front Page Story’ and ‘Love Tangle’ – featured. In excellent shape for its age (VG), this is a very uncommon item, priced at £50. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

As you may realise, the purpose of our Clearance Corner lots is to clear space in our shop by discontinuing titles we’re no longer carrying to make way for new and incoming stuff. As such, they will only be offered for a short time. This Clearance Corner lot, listed on 11th December 2018, has not been snapped up and is nearing the end of its time with us. If not purchased by the weekend, we will have to dispose of it. Here are the details from our original listing:
‘A charming bargain lot in Clearance Corner this week. Classics Illustrated Junior, the companion to the famous Classics Illustrated series, commenced in 1953 and ran for 77 issues, featuring many famous (and some not so famous) fairy tales with brightly painted cover illustrations. Included in this lot of 36 different issues are Sleeping Beauty, Jack & the Beanstalk, Puss In Boots, Rumplestiltskin, The Emperor’s New Clothes, Rapunzel, Snow White & Rose Red and many more. The UK version of this was called Pixi Tales and there is one issue of that included in this lot of otherwise US versions, making 37 in total, all in a mix of FA to FN grades. We have to clear something to make room for our Atlas Explosion, so these, with regret, have to go. Here’s your chance for a real bargain — just £25 the lot (UK postage if required would be an extra £7).’ SORRY, THIS LOT HAS NOW SOLD

*DC: Following his critically-acclaimed ‘Fourth World’ series of intersecting titles at DC, Jack Kirby branched out into three stand-alone series. One such was Kamandi, a.k.a. ‘The Last Boy On Earth’, doubtless influenced by the then-ongoing Planet of the Apes phenomenon. Kamandi showed a post-apocalyptic future in which all humanity apart from our titular hero had degraded to virtual beasts, oppressed by all manner of super-evolved animals. Later attempts by other, lesser talents have been made to link this in with the greater DC Universe, but most folk prefer to think of the original 59-issue run from 1972 to 1978 as a self-contained odyssey. We have issue #1 of this cult series, a cents copy with no pence price or overstamp; only the very lightest, barely perceptible corner wear on this beautiful copy which we have graded VF+ at £50. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: Among the most sought-after comics of the 1970s, Hulk #180 featured the first appearance of Wolverine, the Canadian super-hero who, outstripping everyone’s expectations, became the most popular Marvel character since the dawn of the Marvel Age. Created by Len Wein and Herb Trimpe (from a John Romita design), Wolvy was revived by Wein when he put together the New X-Men who debuted in Giant-Size X-Men #1, and since then, Wolverine became the star of the X-Men, and a media darling in his own right. Having said that, it wasn’t a lengthy first appearance – in the final panel of #180, Wolverine popped up to make dire threats to both Jade-Jaws and guest-monster the winsome Wendigo – but it’s still the first on-panel appearance of the decade’s mega-hot star. Never distributed in the UK, this gap in your Hulk history can be filled with an attractive FN+ copy, tight & bright with minimal spine and corner wear, flexible off-white interiors, and, most crucially, the Marvel Value stamp firmly in place! FN+ cents (no pence variants on this puppy) at £300. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: By the time of Spider-Man’s 50th issue, ‘new’ artist John Romita had made the series his own, and this special issue was marked with the debut of a new villain, the Kingpin – so long associated with Daredevil, in the post-Miller years, that many people overlook the fact that he originally belonged to Spider-Man’s Rogues’ Gallery! The cover to #50, with Peter’s temporarily abandoning his Spider-Man identity, has become etched in the minds of a generation, endlessly imitated and ‘homaged’, in comics and other media. Our newest copy of ASM #50 is VG+, a pence copy with strong spine, but very light corner wear. Firmly attached at cover and centrefold, largely unimpaired cover scene, with excellent cover colour and gloss, and only a tiny chip out of the top cover edge. Interiors clean, off-white, flexible, with considerable eye appeal. VG+ p £200. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: The Claremont & Cockrum New X-Men was already a critical hit when #101 turned up, and in a dramatic turn of events, Jean Grey, former weak sister of the team, was escalated into a powerhouse when a cosmic ray storm seemed to transform her into the entity known as Phoenix – and a major, ultimately tragic, story arc for the X-Men began. The legend was somewhat tarnished in later years by Marvel’s back & forth position on whether Jean actually was the Phoenix, or whether the Phoenix force just manifested itself in her form (with a swingin’ new costume), but nevertheless, this remains a key and highly sought after issue, whose appeal has been enhanced by the announcement of the forthcoming X-Men: Dark Phoenix movie. This copy is VG-, light to moderate spine & corner creasing, pence copy, for £100.

*Marvel: A fabulous fifty issues added to our stock of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes between #10 and #92, including highlights such as (deep breath): the debut of the sinister Immortus (#10); the Swordsman premiere in #19; the heroic Black Knight’s debut in #48; the nefarious Grim Reaper enters in #52; the second X-Men/Avengers battle in #53; the debut of Yellowjacket in #59, and his subsequent wedding to the wonderful Wasp in #60; the Invaders ‘prototype’ in #71; #72 sees the first appearance of the villainous cartel Zodiac; #83 sees the first appearance of the Valkyrie and the Lady Liberators and #87 gives us the awesome origin of the Black Panther! Depicted are #10 (VG+ p £45); #11 App. FN p £49 – one non-story page out and #83 VG+ p £45. Almost all of this new acquisition is characterised by high grades, averaging FN+ or better, and with many, many VF’s in the mix.

*Marvel: Following the success of 1970’s Conan the Barbarian title, Marvel hoped to expand the fantasy genre in their line-up, and their next target was Kull the Conqueror, another adaptation, like Conan, from the fantasy works of author Robert E. Howard. Although he didn’t achieve the popularity of Conan, lasting 29 issues in his first series, he remained an ongoing part of the Conan continuity, and has undergone sporadic revivals. We have issue #1 (1971) to #9, then #11 (when the title was renamed Kull the Destroyer) to #14, beautifully illustrated by, at various times, the sensational Severin Siblings, John and Marie, and Mike Ploog, among others. Issue #1 (Kull’s second appearance – the Marvel Comics version debuted in Creatures on the Loose #10 – and his origin) is FN+ £20; prices on all other issues in our online catalogue. SORRY, KULL #1 NOW SOLD

*Horror 1940-1959: Resting our extensive Atlas horror updates for a week – still many more to come, folks! – we turn our attention to one of the 1950s more notorious publishers, Harvey Comics. Although best known today for their barrage of juvenile titles starring Richie Rich and his little chums, Harvey were at one point prominent players in the horror field, with their mystery titles being acknowledged as gorier than Atlas’ and approaching the artistic quality of EC’s. Black Cat Mystery took over the numbering from a defunct super-heroine series, and artist Lee Elias proved as adept at delineating corpses and vengeful ghouls as he was at the Hollywood-based heroics of Linda Turner. Elias was joined on the series by Powell, Nostrand and Fujitani, and the covers are among some of the most iconic of the genre. We have a selection of Black Cat Mystery from #37 to #48 (#48 depicted VG+ £72 with free incomplete #40). Several of them are complete but low-grade copies at very affordable prices.

*Western: 1956’s Frontier Western had a smattering of series characters who appeared intermittently – the Pecos Kid and Ringo Kid, for example – but was primarily noteworthy for its outstanding line-up of artistic contributors, including Matt Baker, Reed Crandall, Gene Colan, Mort Drucker, Jack Davis, Gray Morrow, John Romita, Doug Wildey – it’s a whole passel of talent penned in just ten issues! Striking covers by Heath, Maneely and Severin also characterise this short-run but high-quality anthology. Issue #6 (FN+ £42) is illustrated, but the complete series of ten issues is currently available.

*Magazines/Books About Vintage US Comics: Two different historical tomes for your consideration this week. Comics artist Greg Sadowksi produced ‘B. Krigstein’ in 2002 for Fantagraphics Books, a tribute to, and appreciation of, one of Sadowkski’s own artistic heroes, the iconic Artist Bernie Krigstein, illustrator of ‘Master Race’ for EC as well as many other acclaimed stories. This first volume runs from 1919 to 1955, a handsome and lavishly-illustrated hardcover, VF £25. In 2010, the UK’s ILEX publishers issued ‘Comic Art Propaganda’ by Fredrik Stromburg, a compendium of the way the comics art has been used to inform, and deform, the minds of people over the decades. This full-colour hardcover with dustjacket is VF £20.

*Collected Editions: Originating in the short-lived Ranger weekly, but best remembered from its lengthy run in Look & Learn, the sumptuous science-fiction saga ‘The Trigan Empire’, written by Mike Butterworth and illustrated by Don Lawrence, is regarded as one of the highest accomplishments of the UK comics industry. However, most readers found the two-page weekly instalments somewhat insufficient. Two early attempts to remedy this were the 1973 Look & Learn Book of the Trigan Empire, which mimicked the British hardcover Annual format to present a collection of strips behind a new Lawrence cover; and the 1978 oversized hardcover from Hamlyn, which featured almost three times the number of story pages as its predecessor (though oddly they don’t reprint much of the same material). Both of these full-colour collections are back in stock. The 1973 volume is FN at £45, while the 1978 volume is FN/VF £55.

*Boys’ Adventure & War Picture Libraries: More stock for the ever-popular combat-themed Picture Libraries, with light top-ups to Air Ace (from #219), Commando (from #115), Valiant (from #17) and War (from #240).

This year, as usual, we’ll be participating in the wonderful London Bookshop Crawl, organised by Ninja Book Box. This event, taking place over Friday 8th to Sunday 10th February*, gives you a chance to visit many of London’s bookshops (selling both old and new books). With a choice of approaches, from rugged individual exploration to organised tours, there are plenty of ways to get your literary fix. Many places will have offers only available to Crawlers: here at 30th Century Comics we will be offering 10% off all purchases from our Book department to anyone who mentions the Bookshop Crawl. Full details can be obtained from www.bookshopcrawl.co.uk.

*NB We will only be open on Friday and Saturday.

*DC: DC’s Limited Collectors’ Edition tabloids of the 1970s, most of which were non-distributed in the UK, are highly sought-after now, their extra dimensions not lending themselves to long-term storage, and being more prone to damage than the average comic book. One of the most popular in the series is number C-37, starring the Batman and his Rogue’s Gallery, an ‘All-Villain Special’ featuring vintage tales of the Joker, Catwoman, Two-Face, the Penguin and the Scarecrow. This non-distributed item is a stunning VF+, with vibrant cover colour, sharp edges and unbroken cover gloss; if not for the tiniest crease in the upper left corner, it would pass as a new item – in fact, we’d bet money you’ve had comics advertised as ‘mint’ that were less appealing than this. On sale at VF+ £40. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: One of the most sought-after Marvel Comics of the 1960s is Fantastic Four #48, which introduced the Silver Surfer, a cosmic-powered being the equal of the combined FF… and the Surfer’s master, Galactus, an entity of even more monstrous might! Both became major figures in the Marvel Universe, with the Surfer repenting his role as Galactus’ herald and choosing the side of justice, while Galactus’ insatiable hunger drives him ever onwards to more heinous acts. Both have gone on to long and illustrious careers in the greater Marvel Universe, and this copy of the double debut is one of the nicest we’ve beheld, with tight staples, sharp edges, off-white interior pages and deep, vibrant, unbroken cover colour and gloss. There is minimal spine wear, and an extremely faint vertical line, barely perceptible, which runs from the top cover edge through the centre of the logo (the central ‘t’ and ‘r’ on the two rows) before vanishing entirely around the first ‘a’ in ‘Galactus’. However, this line does not break the cover colour, and would be easy to miss if you weren’t specifically looking for it. FN+ pence on sale at £900. SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: Following his return to active service in Avengers #4, Captain America became a companion feature of Iron Man in Tales of Suspense. After the division of the Marvel double-feature books in 1968, when distribution embargoes were slackened, Cap gained his own series again, though it retained the numbering of Tales of Suspense, premiering with #100. Featuring the talents of Lee, Kirby and Shores, this re-introduced the Sentinel of Liberty in solo action to the modern age (though between the retelling of his origins and his ongoing plotlines, he certainly had enough pals along for the ride in this first issue!). This copy is a very respectable edition, clean and appealing, tight staples at cover & centrefold, superior inside pages, minimal corner and edge wear, an above-average copy of Cap’s premier issue. FN p £150 SORRY, THIS HAS NOW SOLD

*Marvel: The Black Panther’s series in Jungle Action, which attracted a lot of acclaim at the time, was known for being verbose, introspective, reflective and philosophical. When the character’s co-creator, Jack Kirby, took over as writer and artists on T’Challa’s follow-up solo series, the results were… a considerable contrast. Shouting! Explosions! Aliens! Time-Travel! Implausibly-muscled ladies with black lipstick! Cosmic critters! All were here, and all playing at full volume all the time, in the crazed kinetic frenzy that Kirby was renowned for, as the King of Wakanda faced off against the Six-Million Year Man, King Solomon’s Frog, the sinister Agents of Kiber, Yetis, Samurais, and other bizarre menaces. We have the first five issues of Kirby’s 1970s relaunch back in stock, including two copies of #1, the nicer of which (VG+ p £20) is depicted. Prices and grades on the others in our online catalogue. SORRY, THESE HAVE NOW SOLD

*Miscellaneous 1940-1959: The Jungle genre, in which a white person becomes king or queen of a remote primitive nation, has fallen out of favour recently for obvious historical reasons, but in the 1940s and 1950s it was all the rage, and Atlas had several entries in the field. Chief amongst them were two jungle goddesses – Lorna, as previously listed in our catalogue, and Jann of the Jungle, who debuted in 1954’s Jungle Tales anthology, swiftly ousting her stablemates to become sole proprietress of the title, renamed ‘Jann of the Jungle’ from #8 onwards. Jane Hastings, stuntwoman and animal trainer, came to Africa to shoot a movie and stayed behind when the natives acclaimed her as ‘Jann’, their heroine of a generation ago, who turned out to be Jane’s grandmother. Nothing implausible there, then. Drawn by (among others) Arthur Peddy, Al Williamson and Jay Scott Pike, Jann’s beautifully-illustrated adventures gave reigning jungle queen Lorna a run for her money. We have new issues of Jungle Tales and of Jann’s own title back in stock, with the striking Bill Everett cover on #16 (VG £41) illustrated here.

*War: Making his debut in Battle Action #5, Battle Brady (real name unrevealed, unless his parents had a really weird sense of humour) was a Texas native who eschewed US issue weapons in favour of his family’s heirloom six-shooters, and frequently charged into combat against the Koreans shouting ‘Remember the Alamo!’ The slender concept of this Hank Chapman/Joe Maneely co-creation proved surprisingly popular, and Battle popped up all over the many war titles that Atlas produced. Eventually he took over the Men In Action anthology with #10 to gain his own title, issue #11 of which was used in the notorious pro-censorship book Parade of Pleasure. We have several Battle Brady’s new in stock, from #10 (1st issue of series, VG £39, pictured) on, replete with the violence and xenophobia for which the Atlas war line is renowned. SORRY, THESE HAVE NOW SOLD