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Journey Into Mystery #65 - Different 10c Price Sizes ?
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Started by Get Marwood & I,

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Get Marwood & I

Get Marwood & I

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Guys,

 

There are two discussion points within this thread. One relates to the existence of Marvel US originals with ‘L Miller’ distribution lines on the indicias, the other relates to Marvel Price vs Font vs Indicia Variants.

 

This post summarises my findings for Marvel Price vs Font vs Indicia Variants

 

Since I started this thread, I’ve been compiling examples using images from the web and placing them in summary tables in an attempt to establish patterns and answers. So far I have posted three summary tables:

 

1. Journey Into Mystery #58 to #69

2. Tales To Astonish #9 to #20

3. Strange Tales #75 to 86

 

The titles cover the dates May 1960 to Jul 1961.

 

It is very difficult to find images online of indicia data, so there are many blanks, but when I place the tables side by side, there are some reasonable observations that can be made.

 

Observation 1 – 10c Price Format Variants (No T&P Indicia) May to Dec 1960

 

I have found no 10c copies with a Thorpe & Porter indicia line for any issue dated up to and including December 1960. 10c issues exist during this period with Price Format Variations (White Price Box / no White Price Box), but in each example I have found neither version carries the T&P line.

 

Question – Why do US priced issues dated up to and including December 1960 have Price Format Variants?

 

Observation 2 - 10c Price Format Variants (With T&P Indicia) Jan to Mar 1961

 

For the period January 1961 to March 1961, every 10c issue I have found as a ‘White Price Box’ variant carries the Thorpe & Porter distribution line on its indicia. I have found only two examples of a ‘No White Box’ issue during this date range (both TTA #16 font variants) and these also carry the T&P line.

 

Question – Does every US original, Pence or Cents, carry the T&P distribution indicia line for the period January 1961 to March 1961? If so, why?

 

Question – Why does TTA #16 have two different ‘No White Box’ 10c price fonts?

 

Question – Why do JIM #64 & 65, and ST #81 have two different ‘White Box’ 10c price fonts?

 

Observation 3 – Apr 1961 to Jul 1961

 

For all three titles, I have found only one type of US cents copy for the months April to Jul 1961. None of the examples carry the T&P indicia line. The current indication is that the cents variations cease from April 1961. Only one Pence and one Cents type has been found

 

Conclusion:

 

As I see it, the variations are likely to have been all printed in the US as there is no evidence to suggest that copies were printed anywhere else. For 10c priced copies, I have not been able to find an example for the same issue number where one variation has the T&P line and one doesn’t. So the likelihood is that we remain with only two ‘destination’ variants – one for the US and one for the UK, as it has always been.

 

As I have not been able to link the existence of cent priced variations to another country that used cents and dollars, the assumption is that both were intended for the US market. The only logical conclusion I can come up with as to why there are cent variations for the US is that one of them is a subsequent printing. hm

 

Hope this has made sense – if you’re interested, print off the summaries and compare them to the above conclusions. It brings it to life.

 

Meanwhile, I’m going to continue to try to get someone in ‘authority’ to recognise the variations exist and, hopefully, help explain them.

 

Over to you guys!

 

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Get Marwood & I

Get Marwood & I

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I think TTA16 was also mentioned:

 

Has the Thorpe & Porter indica:

tta_16_zpsmz5q2ydl.jpg

 

-bc

 

Thanks again BC. Two of these help. I'll add your comments to the table. They don't change any of the conclusions, but do further cement the patterns. (thumbs u

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EwanUK

EwanUK

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Is it the two cables missing at the top of the T and R ?

 

Actually no, but you're right...

 

What I was seeing is a difference between the "c" in 10c

One has no bottom part of the curl

One has a bit of it

 

This seems to be repeated across different copies on ebay / Google so I don't think it's "wear" related

 

Very very minor I know but thought I'd point it out

 

I'm sure this is a printing anomaly rather than a variant but :cloud9:

 

Great summary BTW! :acclaim:

 

 

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Get Marwood & I

Get Marwood & I

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Is it the two cables missing at the top of the T and R ?

 

Actually no, but you're right...

 

What I was seeing is a difference between the "c" in 10c

One has no bottom part of the curl

One has a bit of it

 

This seems to be repeated across different copies on ebay / Google so I don't think it's "wear" related

 

Very very minor I know but thought I'd point it out

 

I'm sure this is a printing anomaly rather than a variant but :cloud9:

 

Great summary BTW! :acclaim:

 

 

Cheers Ewan. Did the summary stack up in your view? I'm going to get a few more examples and then see where I can take it.

 

I did spot the 10c smudge. Just a printing glitch. Funny that the cables were missing too. I used to collect Spidey printing errors. Better not get me started on that one...some people think I've already scraped through the bottom of the barrel with the price format variations ;)

 

 

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davidpg

davidpg

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I checked my copy...it's a tall font with T&P. This copy was presumably sold and stayed here in Canada as I bought it from a local shop decades ago (if that info is of any interest).

 

That's JIM 65 btw.

Edited by davidpg
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Get Marwood & I

Get Marwood & I

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I checked my copy...it's a tall font with T&P. This copy was presumably sold and stayed here in Canada as I bought it from a local shop decades ago (if that info is of any interest).

 

That's JIM 65 btw.

 

Thanks David - that fits in with the current thinking so far (thumbs u

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Get Marwood & I

Get Marwood & I

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Hi Guys,

 

During the interlude I've been busy gathering further evidence on both themes in this thread I started.

 

I've more or less worked out the L Miller situation, and will post the findings soon. Gunsmoke Western, it turns out, is not the only title which has an L Miller indicia line, so it is no longer correct to say (as most reference sites do) that Thorpe & Porter were "the sole distributors of Marvel comics in the early 1960's". They weren't.

 

Turning to the early price font variants, I've populated tables for a number of additional titles and, again, more or less have the complete picture of the brief time period where these variations exist. That detail later (with pictures - I moved some of my old ones into a folder and that seems to have broken some of the picture links in my previous posts).

 

As to why these font / price format variations exist, I've been less successful. CGC are not responding to any mails and, whilst I've had responses from a number of high profile industry figures, all replied in the "can't help you but good luck in your search" mould. I've sent private messages to a number of board members who had links to Sparta, but no luck so far.

 

So as it stands, I know what exists, and in what pattern, but still don't know why.

 

But there may be a glimmer of hope....

 

Despite being advised that I was wasting my time, I wrote to Steve Ditko, firstly, to thank him for the impact on my life his work has had, but also - somewhat cheekily I guess - to see if he knew why these font variations exist. Maybe he would surprise me with an answer! So I composed a letter on the 6th of January this year and my wife (who's been kicking up a storm elsewhere from the looks of it) took it to the post office on the 7th. She forgot to put the equivalent of return postage in the envelope. So I thought I'd be a lucky man if my letter did not grace his dust bin.

 

13 days later.......

sdl_zpsw6ghdg91.jpg

 

I can't bring myself to open it! :o:o:o

 

 

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