ARE HEROES ALL LOOSE CANNONS...?

Copyright relevant owner

If you're in a certain age group, you'll know that back in the '60s (and before), US comics were transported to this country as ballast on ships.  You probably wouldn't have known that fact back then as there was no need to, but most older collectors are aware of it now, and probably have been since the '70s and '80s.  Again, if you're of a certain age, you'll remember some US comics turning up again in shops months or years after they'd were first on sale, presumably because there'd been copies lying forgotten in the hold of a ship or in a warehouse somewhere.

I recall buying my second copy of a 1966 issue of WORLD'S FINEST in Blackpool in '73 or '74, as well as several KIRBY FANTASTIC FOURS and BUSCEMA SILVER SURFERS.  Plus, numerous copies of JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY Annual #1 from 1965 turned up in various newsagents in my home town, again in '73/'74.  It was quite a common occurrence back then, but when the whole distribution setup changed, finding pristine copies of '60s comics years after the fact (and at cover price too) became a thing of the past.

With one exception that I know of - HEROES, INC. Presents CANNON, a 1969 self-published comic by WALLY WOOD, aimed at US military servicemen serving abroad.  Apparently, back in 2005, HERITAGE AUCTIONS auctioned off a lot of 70,000 issues of the title.  A number of years ago, I saw a stack of them on a shelf in a Glasgow comics shop, going for the same price as new US comicbooks alongside it, so I guess they came from that stash of 70,000 copies.  I bought a couple (though not both on the same day) and still have them all these years later.

There was a second issue in 1976, this time published by CPL GANG PUBLICATIONS, but that's one I don't have.  As it seems to be an afterthought, I probably won't bother tracking it down, but if I ever see one for a reasonable price, I may succumb.  I thought I'd featured the first issue on the blog before, but I can't find the post, so I've decided just to treat this occasion as the first time.  There's some nice art in the mag and it simply sings of the '60s, so I'm sure all you oldies out there will enjoy seeing it.

So here's a question for you all.  Have you ever bought any 'old' comics years after the fact in brand-new condition from a newsagent's spinner-rack (for the same price as then-contemporary comics), and if so, which ones were they and do you still have them?  Regardless of whether you do or not, what memories are conjured up in your mind on sight or thought of them, and do you still remember the thrill of exhilaration when you saw them looking up at you from that pile of other mags?    

Posted in: Cartoons