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AJD's comic notebook
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1,132 posts in this topic

15 minutes ago, Duffman_Comics said:

Any idea where the original stories appeared? I've had a run at the usual sites (GCD, Ausreprints etc) but they are very spartan with regard to detail.

All Atlas reprints from Justice

Story 1: The crook who couldn't be caught

Story 2: Lead-pipe cinch

Story 3: On parole

Story 4: The syndicate strikes

 

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4 hours ago, AJD said:

Perhaps the most notable feature of this comic is that it has an ad for the first appearance in print of @Point Five - and I'm not making that up!

CrimeBusters19_back.thumb.jpg.a73be911a2e84d673a47015b96af7615.jpg

A lot of people don't know that "Pistol Packing Professor" was my first choice for a screenname. (Taken though.) :(

 

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3 hours ago, 1950's war comics said:

i thought maybe you might like being called point five because thats the grade of most your comics 0.5 lol???

Correct, that is my origin story. :)

Actually, when I first discovered the GA forum, board member 'nearmint' was kind of a big player there and had a lot of high-end books to show off. I said to myself 'well if that guy is Near Mint, I should be Point Five!' My collection has come quite a long ways since then, but the name kinda stuck.

 

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15 hours ago, Point Five said:

Correct, that is my origin story. :)

Actually, when I first discovered the GA forum, board member 'nearmint' was kind of a big player there and had a lot of high-end books to show off. I said to myself 'well if that guy is Near Mint, I should be Point Five!' My collection has come quite a long ways since then, but the name kinda stuck.

 

Good story and i may have to change my name now to,,,,,, Mr 9.9 lol 

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Many, many years ago I was aware that US collectors had a fondness for Australian reprints precisely because of the superior paper quality.

Take a look at that last panel, a great Barksian seascape, complete with puffins. Another aquatic bird. Just lovely.

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19 hours ago, Duffman_Comics said:

Many, many years ago I was aware that US collectors had a fondness for Australian reprints precisely because of the superior paper quality.

Take a look at that last panel, a great Barksian seascape, complete with puffins. Another aquatic bird. Just lovely.

I've never seen an Australian book.  How is the paper different?

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On 3/28/2018 at 8:09 PM, Point Five said:

Correct, that is my origin story. :)

Actually, when I first discovered the GA forum, board member 'nearmint' was kind of a big player there and had a lot of high-end books to show off. I said to myself 'well if that guy is Near Mint, I should be Point Five!' My collection has come quite a long ways since then, but the name kinda stuck.

 

That's a great story!

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23 hours ago, Lucky Baru said:

I've never seen an Australian book.  How is the paper different?

Hmmm. OK I'll take a run at this.

"Back in the day" in this context means pre 1975. No "Baxter" paper with any funnybooks and the US comics were printed on newsprint - not a lot different than the Daily newspaper (what's that grampa? lol ).

The OZ reprints have a slicker paper. It is not the same calibre as Baxter paper, but the structure is noticeably "finer" i.e. it has a less "pulpy" texture and it has also been treated at the time of manufacture with some sort of "sizing" that results in a semi-gloss finish.

The use of this paper also results in far less browning/fading and no brittle books of which I am aware.

Someone with a greater background/knowledge of the topic (I hope) will chime in here.

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7 hours ago, Duffman_Comics said:

Hmmm. OK I'll take a run at this.

"Back in the day" in this context means pre 1975. No "Baxter" paper with any funnybooks and the US comics were printed on newsprint - not a lot different than the Daily newspaper (what's that grampa? lol ).

The OZ reprints have a slicker paper. It is not the same calibre as Baxter paper, but the structure is noticeably "finer" i.e. it has a less "pulpy" texture and it has also been treated at the time of manufacture with some sort of "sizing" that results in a semi-gloss finish. The use of this paper also results in far less browning/fading and no brittle books of which I am aware.

That's it in a nutshell. It's also a thicker paper, and the sizing allows for a deeper colour strike, which also adds to the visual appeal. Here's a photo that hopefully shows the difference. The Dell issue is underneath, and the Australian edition on top.

001.thumb.JPG.072205b7bc4e3f49b33933e1e88ea30d.JPG

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Still have a few from my last shipment to post. This is the only copy of Ghost I have, but it's a good one. It got the 'Mrs AJD seal of approval'TM too.

Ghost_4.thumb.jpg.041046c47f35d7b5aaee50c6a57aa25f.jpg

Alas, the cover is easily the best aspect of this book. Coming near the end of the Fiction House era, pickings get a little lean. It was hard to pick out an UTC entry that was worth the electrons, but this half-splash will have to do.

Ghost_4_int.thumb.jpg.09fdfd462d09304af74a9913f551807d.jpg

 

 

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3 hours ago, 1950's war comics said:

Those Ghosts sell like hotcakes when offered on these boards !!

nice affordable example you have there !!

Nice polite euphemism you have there! lol

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4 hours ago, Harry Lime said:

Nice pins on the Ghost cover! Is that pre-Seven Year Itch?

I'll say! She can blow my trumpet of Valkyrie any day :D

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Here's another late Fiction House book that @1950's war comics can charitably describe as 'affordable'. lol Nice colours though.

Cowgirl_Romances_11.thumb.jpg.c78b28ac5232312fd4840a2bb2f51efa.jpg

The UTC this time around isn't a splash, but a page that contains one of those lines of dialogue that I particularly dislike - "Help, I'm falling!"

Cowgirl_Romances_11_int.thumb.jpg.2825439dbb8fadbaa44694ff61e20435.jpg

I always hated that about Marvel and DC comics. "That wall! Falling on me! It will crush me, unless I can..." The dialogue in a world with physics would actually be more like "Oh f- <mangle, crush, flatten>"

 

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