Tonka Winnebago

I never had this as a kid but because of "Shazam!", I totally wanted it. Also, I required a Mego Shazam figure to pull this off right. 

My current retirement dream is to own a real one and you'd better believe I'm putting that lightning bolt on the front.

Get the expanded digital edition of Rack Toys here.

Mr. Mentor's Autograph

After watching the Shazam! movie last night (It's a lot of fun), I was reminded of how obsessed I was with the Filmation series as a kid/adult. 

One of my favourite pieces I've found is this Mr. Mentor promotional "autograph" from the series. Seeing as Les is no longer with us, it's the best I'll ever get.

New Six Million Dollar Man Shirt in our Redbubble store!

Don't forget to join our new facebook group.

Get the expanded digital edition of Rack Toys here.

Superheroes and Apes in Japan

I was elated to find this ad full of Ourway Studios Superhero and Planet of the Apes merch in a Japanese issue of StarLog.

Especially mind warping is those Superhero stamp albums, which I totally had and collected as a kid. I wonder if they still accept orders......

Check out the Our Way Studios catalog from '77!

Super Babies!

The Amsco Super Babies never warmed to me as a superhero loving kindergartener, I was well into Mego action figures by this point and Shazam's inaccurate red hair bugged me even then. As an adult, I think they're one of the most charming bits of 70s Superhero merch.

 I'm pleased top announce that things have almost returned to normal here and I'll be updating the site again. Thanks to everyone for the kindness.

Mighty Men of Action and Adventure

I've posted bits of this before in the dial up days but I don't think I've shown the whole ad.

I'm just in awe, I'd wear the majority of these right now especially the Famous Monsters and Tarzan.

Also, it's weird to see Shazam! designs yet only one Batman.

Comic Heroes Tube Socks!

Pretty commonplace now but back in '76 some Shazam! socks would have really brightened my day. Especially 65% Orlon Shazam socks.

World's Greatest Super School Supplies

I found this ruler on Ebay a few months ago, i collect Superhero school supplies (sorry ladies, I'm spoken for) but the more interesting thing to me was the hi-jacking of the Mego World's Greatest Superheroes packaging art.

Many of these images were specifically drawn by Mego and didn't appear on other company products, while the seller told me it was a foreign mail in promo, I was leaning towards knock off.

Leave it my buddy Rob over at the Aquaman Shrine to solve this mystery without even being asked. He submitted this, a packaged Aquaman pencil sharpener using the same art. That's some unlicensed Hong Kong goodness there....

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Super Belts

My buddy Steve sent me this great sales sheet for these awesome Superhero belt buckles I'm sure I saw in the Heroes World catalog when I was in short pants. It's a wonderful pistache of mid 70s Superhero merchandise, the top tier from both houses are present.

It's kind of funny how these mention "boys sizes" seeing as I can enter any major department store right now and find Superhero merchandise to cover every inch of my "lummoxy" frame. Not so much in 1975..... 

More Superheroics

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Superheroic School Supplies

One of my sideline obsessions (because I need more) are these mid seventies to early eighties superhero school supplies by Alco. I proudly had the Batman from this set on my desk as a kid and I remember our local stationary store (remember those?) had a display of these in the window.

This Shazam is the sole carded entry into the series, I remember seeing it as a kid wondering why he was holding a lighting bolt like that.

This Wonder Woman is a later run by Alco,  Wonder Woman is usually the first one you find of most vintage toy lines.

Stumbled on these at a local toy show of all places. As you can see my collection isn't huge, it probably wasn't wise to turn on others to this, see you on ebay!

Saturday Morning Adventures

One of the things that made going back to the school in the fall more tolerable growing up was the promise of a new fall schedule of cartoons on Saturday mornings on the Big 3 networks.

Around August of every year while your parents were checking the back to school flyers, comic books began to give you and early taste of the type of programming that you could look forward to in the fall. I used to covet this and of course, plan my weekend entertainment in advance.

These were exciting times that I'm sad my kids can't really experience. I decided to create a gallery devoted to those special ads that still give me tingles when I read them:

1970s Saturday Morning Cartoon Ads Gallery

Shazamas

Shazam, Scooby Doo, Star Trek and the Six Million Dollar Man, that's pretty much all the S words I knew at six.

Great Hera! Look at those Box Cars!

The mid to late seventies saw what would become a regular event in our lifetime, an explosion on superhero merchandising. Some of it cool and logical like the Mego Superheros and some of it well, just plain strange. Take for example the 1977 Tyco Superhero boxcars, an odd marriage of Comic Books and the Rail Yard.

Tyco solely went with the DC characters for this venture and the used the seventies four pronged merchandising machine of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and Shazam! Shazam faded from a lot of merchandise once his live action TV Series was cancelled. Poor Aquaman once again gets the shaft....

1977 Tyco Superhero Box Cars

Also check out these links for more Super Heroic Merchandise from the same era!

Colouring Book Theatre: Shazam!

In searching for the now mythis Superman colouring book, I found this oversized Shazam Book. Cover image borrowed from Treasury Comics.com.

Shazam was one of my favourite characters as a kid, it probably didn't hurt that I was like 3 years old when he made his return/merchandising blitz.

I got this in a lot of Treasury Comics, it had been used somewhat so I gave it to my son and from what I can see, he coloured two pages and it got put away.

The book is very well done, trying to emulate that classic C.C. Beck art style and tone, which was always a shock for a kid who got introduced to the character via the popular Filmation TV series.

T

The book opens with Captain Marvel beating the snot out of some bank robbers, one escapes but is found by Cap's evil nemesis, Dr. Sivana. Sivana puts "Bummy" in a device (that no doubt shaves uni-brows) and he's a dead ringer for cap. Great nickname, "Bummy" I'd be thrilled with that title.

T

So Sivana kidnaps a girl with the help of his Bummy Marvel and the real Cap investigates. Budget concious Sivana has made use of the discarded Eye brow hair from earlier.

T

Cap is now a wanted man so he consults the Wizard for advice, note that somebody has decided to add a little hilarity to the situation.

T

Out of no where an orphan boy shows up but wrong, he's a midget looking to cut himself in. I have met many a little person in my life and none have ever fooled me into thinking they were a ten year old.

T

Cap shows up finally and to prove who the real Cap is, he lays a royal beating on Bummy. It goes on for three pages! I would have never suspected Captain Marvel had anger issues.

T

Cap then turns into Billy, who then takes on the bad guy midget for two pages, what the hell? This is more violent than the Batman book. Billy then comments how easy it was and turns into Captain Marvel to bring his carcass back to the authorities.

Got a colouring book you'd like to guest review? Drop me a line!

Previous Colouring Book Theatre Entries can be found here.

Coming Next Week: Superman! (I ain't promising)