Month: December 2015 (Page 4 of 5)

The PopCulteer
December 11, 2015

Charlton Neo Gift Guide

Regular readers of PopCult should be well aware by now of your PopCulteer’s admiration and enjoyment of the Charlton Neo movement. Charlton Comics was sort of the “shadow comic book company” that operated on the fringe of the industry as a self-contained unit that handled their own editorial, printing, and distribution. Their comics had a certain funkiness to them because of the weird printing and the fact that they didn’t pay anywhere near the comic industry’s top rates.

However what they lacked in budget, they made up for in creative freedom, youthful exuberance, and fan enthusiasm. Sadly, Charlton Comics floated belly-up to the top of the comic book company bowl in 1985. Over the past couple of years, the Charlton Neo movement has resurrected the spirit and sense of fun of the original Charlton Comics and they make fantastic gifts for the well-heeled comic book lover on your gift list.

Charlton Arrow

The flagship of the Charlton Neo movement is the Charlton Arrow, an anthology series that combines work by original Charlton creators with that of like minded newcomers. These books are a tremendous amount of fun and include some top notch storytelling.

In addition to the Charlton Arrow, there have been new books featuring Romance and Western stories, plus an anthology collecting some of the Pix-C webcomics which had only been available to contributors to the Charlton Neo Patreon campaign.

All of these comics can be ordered directly from Mort Todd at his website and there you will also find reprints of Charlton’s Hot Rod comics, as well as other really cool graphic novelties. Many of these books can also be ordered at Amazon. And remember, Charlton Neo comics make great stocking stuffers.

Charlton Spotlight

Charlton Spotlight is a magazine devoted to the history of the original Charlton Comics and presents interviews with the original creators, as well as the occasional previously-unpublished Charlton comic book stories.

The latest issue is hot off the presses and features a full-length interview with legendary Charlton war comics writer Will Franz, creator of fan favorites The Lonely War of Captain Willy Schultz and The Iron Corporal. Franz speaks candidly about his short but seminal career as a late ’60s Charlton writer with memories of artist Sam Glanzman, writer Joe Gill, and various Charlton editors—all liberally illustrated with rare and unpublished photos and art.

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Dennis the Menace
by Fred Toole (Author), Hank Ketcham (Creator), Al Wiseman (Illustrator), Owen Fitzgerald (Illustrator)
Papercutz
ISBN-13: 978-1629912813
$19.99

By popular demand, the classic Dennis the Menace comicbooks are presented for a new audience! Originally published in the 50s, 60s, and 70s, (when they were illustrated by some of the top asrtists of the time) these comics are just as funny today as when they first appeared.

If you only know Dennis The Menace from the single-panel comic, or the later, less-inspired comic books, then you are in for a treat. This volume collects the first batch of the incredible Dennis stories created for Fawcett Comics beginning in the 1950s. While Fawcett famously got out of the comics business in 1953, shutting down their best-selling Captain Marvel comics due to an ongoing legal battle with DC Comics, they quietly got back into comics, plubishing only Dennis The Menace for almost another thirty years.

And the comics were brilliant. Hank Ketchum was too busy with the daily panel, so he turned the comic books over to some top-notch creators. Fred Toole came up with adventure stories on par with Carl Barks’ Uncle Scrooge stories, with rich tales that took Dennis to places never even hinted at in his newspaper panel. A generation of comics creators grew up influenced by these comic books. Los Bros. Hernandez, of Love and Rockets fame, cite this comics as a major inspiration for their own work. The terrific artwork by Wiseman and Fitzgerald also played an important part in the success of these comics.

This is the first time these stories have seen print for decades. This is a great collection of primo comic book art, suitable for all ages. You can find it at Amazon, comic book shops and it can be ordered from most booksellers. They have a remarkable charm and hold up really well.

The Original Toy Soldier Bucket is back! The TimMee Tan vs. Green BUCKET of ARMY MEN includes 24 olive green and 24 tan plastic army guys, a mountain, olive green Patton Tank, tan Fighter Jets, and 2 flags, all packed in a sturdy plastic bucket.

All pieces are proudly manufactured in the United States from HDPE & LDPE plastic with medium detail and just a little flashing. There are 12 different figures and all your old favorites are here, including minesweeper, bazookaman, radio operator, 60mm mortar, light machine gunner, kneeling rifleman, flame thrower, crawling rifleman, prone rifleman, bayonet fighter, and officer with binoculars and handgun.

Figures stand up to 2.1 inches tall (54mm). Danger Mountain features 4 precarious ledges and is is made from sturdy gray color plastic (not thin vacu-formed) and measures 6.5 inches diameter by 5.75 inches tall.

Tan has air support from smaller scale F-14 and F-15 Fighter Jets that measure nearly 7 inches long. Green’s secret weapon is their M48 Patton Tank that features a turret that rotates. Scales from 1:32 to 1:100.

The bucket arrives packaged in a plain box optimized for shipping directly to you. These are great toys and are suitable for ages five and up. LITTLE GREEN ARMY MEN have been inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame and Tim Mee Toys has been a leader in the field for decades. You might find cheaper Green Army Men out there, but you get what you pay for. In this case, thirty-five dollars gets you 48 high-quality, sturdy toy soldiers, plus cool extras like the tank, the jets and the mountain, all packed in a handy, reusable bucket.

And it’s made in the USA, so you feel all patriotic and stuff. Available from Amazon.

Lavishly illustrated with charts, checklists and color photographs, Mego 8 Inch Super-Heroes: World’s Greatest Toys! Special hardcover edition is an obsessive examination of legendary toy company Mego, and the extraordinary line of super-hero action figures that dominated the toy industry throughout the 1970s.  Benjamin Holcomb’s “Mego 8″ Super Heroes: World’s Greatest Toys” book is THE book on the subject, accept no substitutions.

Here’s what MEGOMuseum had to say, “Originally released back in 2007, Holcomb’s book is regarded as the definitive guide to all things Mego.  An amazing amount of research went into this,and it covers everything a collector could ask for!  From packaging to prototypes, interviews with Mego employees, and a look at every single Mego superhero, even the ones that never made it to the toy aisle!”

Featuring a chronological history of Mego, interviews with former employees and vendors, fascinating discoveries never released elsewhere, and thorough coverage of each figure and packaging variant issued in the United States, this is the definitive guide to Mego.

This updated special edition includes an appendix about Figures Toy Company and the retro products that they’ve released. In fact, Figures Toy Company is the only place to buy this special revised edition. It’ll set you back fifty bucks, and it’s worth every penny, but you can get special discounts on the book if you order some of their great ReMego figures. You can even get a free copy of the book if you order $499 worth of stuff, so go ahead, you know you want to get this great book for free. All you have to do is buy your PopCulteer a ton of cool stuff, and then you can keep the book!

Hey, you can’t blame a guy for trying.

If you’ve been a regular reader of PopCult, you probably know that I’m a big fan of the classic Marx Toys Johnny West action figures. And you may also know that we are in the midst of a pretty strong resurgence for a toy that hasn’t been mass-marketed for four decades.

Our gift guide selection today is Johnny West, his friends and foes and horses, courtesy of some enterprising folks who have access to the original molds.

Just added, “Warlock”

We will start with the horses. Johnny West’s faithful steed, Thunderbolt, has galloped back into action thanks to Steve Corn and Stevo’s Toys.

Stevo has put Thunderbolt back into production with the trusty steed and his saddle and gear once again made in the USA, sporting details painted by Stevo, himself. .

Stormcloud, with Western tack

The horses are now available in different paint schemes, with white horses, black horses and Palaminos. Until Christmas, the price has dropped to forty-five bucks each, which includes brand-new tack (unless you order one of them that features vintage Indian tack. This is a great deal and shipping is very reasonable (free if you order over $100). Stevo also sells the tack separately and has other 1/6 gear available on his website.

Anniversary edition Sam Cobra

Of course, to ride those horses, you’ll need some cowboys. One good source is Classic Recasts. James Wozniak has been importing new action figures made in Mexico from the original molds for Johnny West, General Custer and Sam Cobra. Many are being made in new colors that had never been used for these figures before.

One of the many different-colored bodies made this year for General Custer

Earlier this year I wrote about the 50th Anniversary editions of Johnny West and Sam Cobra (the outlaw). I think the Anniversary Johnny West may be sold out, but Sam Cobra is still available, and James has tons of other variant versions of Johnny, Sam and Custer.

You can contact James through Classic Recasts, or check out his eBay auctions to order.He’s always getting cool new stock in, and he has some really cool Johnny West items coming in the new year.

Of course, the folks who jump-started this hobby with high-quality reproductions years ago were Noah and Terri Coop, of Marxman Bros./ CXR. Sadly, Noah is no longer with us, but Terri still has a sizable amount of great reproduction gear, some of it re-engineered to be better than the original.

A small sample of the high-quality gear for Johnny West and friends available from CXR

Terri’s in the middle of redesigning her website, so the best way to order anything from her is to contact her directly at terrilynncoop@gmail.com. For an idea of what Terri has to offer, you can check out the gallery at her old website, but drop her an email before ordering, to make sure that what you want is still in stock. She has replacement soft and hard gear for Johnny West, Fort Apache Fighters and Daniel Boone, some of it molded in all-new colors. CXR also has a limited number of their high-quality figures left, but check with Terri to see what’s available.

Johnny West was one of my favorite toys from my childhood, and it’s great that we can once again buy these cool toys to make us feel young and to share with future generations.

Radio Free Charleston returns from a month-long hiatus with a very special show. This week we feature John Inghram’s Slugfest, recorded live at the Empty Glass during their CD release party on November 19.

Inghram has put together an amazing line up of the area’s finest musicians, Christian Tanzey, Ryan Kenned, Chris Clark, Randraiz Wharton, Tajae Mosely, and of course, John Inghram. The album they released is a masterpiece of high-energy rock/soul/funk fusion music that sounds like a manifesto to party.

They call it “Terrestrial gastropod mollusc funk.” I call it “Virtuoso party music.” Either way, it’s a load of fun and impressive as hell.

You can hear John Inghram and Ryan Kennedy as part of Bob Thompson’s band this week as they perform at The Boulevard Tavern on Tuesday, and do their annual “Joy To The World” Christmas show tour Thursday at the Cultural Center in Charleston, Friday at The Capitol Theater in Wheeling, Saturday at The Smoot Theater in Parkersburg and Sunday at The Asylum in Lewisburg.

In addition, Tajae Mosely will be performing as part of Hybrid Soul Project’s Soul School Friday night at The Empty Glass.

Radio Free Charleston will return next week with a very special Christmas show to support a worthy cause.

Just like last week, we bring you two digital paintings based on your PopCulteer’s Thanksgiving excursion to The Windy City. Above you see a night scene from downtown, while below you see the Chicago skyline, seen from within the city, at the break of day. Click to enlarge.

Check back later this morning for The RFC MINI SHOW starring John Inghram’s Slugfest.

This is a special PopCult Gift Guide entry mashing together four themed suggestions as a special way to help soothe the withdrawl symptoms for the die-hard fan of The Walking Dead on your gift giving list.  One week after the mid-season finale, I’m sure that The Walking Dead fan in your life is just moping around the house, zombie-like, with nothing to do.  Here’s some things that might perk up their little undead hearts.

The Walking Dead: The Pop-up Book
by SD Perry (Author), Becca Zerkin (Creator), David Hawcock (Creator), Sally Elizabeth Jackson (Illustrator)
Insight Editions; Pop edition
ISBN-13: 978-1608874446

This spectacular pop-up book from paper engineers David Hawcock and Becca Zerkin forms the perfect guide to the world of AMC’s The Walking Dead. Filled with eye-catchingly gory pops, the book takes the reader through some of the most iconic moments from the hugely popular series.

The book features five spreads, each with its own central pop that depicts a key element from the show, such as the prison where the survivors found refuge before being attacked by the Governor or the Walker known as “Bicycle Girl” reaching out at the reader. Each spread also includes several smaller pops depicting other memorable elements from The Walking Dead, such as the Governor’s “man cave” (including his unique aquarium complete with severed heads), the Well Walker, and much, much more.

The list price of 66 bucks is a bit high, but online booksellers have it for as low as forty dollars, so shop around. This is not a pop-up book for kids, though, unless you let them watch The Walking Dead.

Fear The Walking Dead

Living in the same universe as The Walking Dead, Fear the Walking Dead is a gritty drama that explores the onset of the undead apocalypse through the lens of a fractured family. Set in a city where people come to escape, shield secrets, and bury their pasts, a mysterious outbreak threatens to disrupt what little stability high school guidance counselor Madison Clark and English teacher Travis Manawa have managed to assemble.

The everyday pressure of blending two families while dealing with resentful, escapist, and strung out children takes a back seat when society begins to break down. A forced evolution, a necessary survival of the fittest takes hold, and our dysfunctional family must either reinvent themselves or embrace their darker histories.

Special Features: A Look At the Series, Inside the Characters of Fear The Walking Dead. Available where ever DVD and Blu Rays are sold, and perfect for fans of The Walking Dead who want to know more of the story.

Zombie Shelf Sitters

These three undead figures will gaze down at you from your bookshelf, atop your TV, or if you wish to balance them precariously, your shoulder.  It’s an undead “See no evil. Hear no evil. Speak no evil.” trio. We saw these for the first time last summer when we went to see the play, “Zombie: The American,” at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in Washington, DC.

While some people might find these gruesome or replusive, folks who enjoy all things reanimated will see them as the natural evolution of The Elf on the Shelf, because you know, once you kill those little buggers, they’re not simply going to go away.

These are available from Amazon, but are currently backordered, yet still expected to be available in plenty of time for Christmas.  The current listed price is just under $24, which is a bit steep, but when they have these in stock, Amazon usually knocks the price down to $15 or less.

Zombie Jerky

Hey, who doesn’t love green meat?  This is a perfectly edible novelty food item labeled as Zombie Jerky and with a bit of a greenish tint to it.  While a lot of folks might find it repulsive, disgusting and unappetizing, fans of The Walking Dead will eat it right up.

The maker decribes Zombie Jerky thusly: “The undead are not just for drinking – but for eating too! Zombie Jerky is a delicious slimy green beef jerky made from 100% real zombies (or cows as some people call them) and boasts a delicious “teriyucky” (teriyaki) flavor. Each realistic looking specimen bag packs 1.25oz of Dead Meat Chunks.”

So if you want to know what it was like during a slow week at Terminus, you can order up a bag of Zombie Jerky and pretend that you’ve turned the tables on the mindless cannibals who inhabit your own personal post-apocalyptic landscape. At Amazon, it’s fifteen bucks for a tiny amount of meat, but once civilization as we know it has been wiped out, this stuff will be priceless.

That is tonight’s PopCult Gift Guide. Look for Monday Morning Art and The RFC MINI SHOW starring John Inghram’s Slugfest tomorrow morning, and more of our endless Gift Guide Monday night.

You probably didn’t know how badly you needed a set of trading cards devoted to The Monster Times.

The Monster Times was a much-loved horror film fan magazine/tabloid created in 1972, published by The Monster Times Publishing Co. Intended as a competitor to Famous Monsters of Filmland, it was edited by various and notable film experts until issue eleven when Joe Kane (who later assumed the nom de plume The Phantom of the Movies for newspaper columns and books) took over as editor and remained in that capacity until The Monster Times was cancelled.

As it says on the Wikipedia page, “Although the main editorial focus of the magazine was horror media, it also featured articles and reviews of modern and classic science fiction/fantasy movies and television series, as well as comic books. Each issue featured a fold out centerfold poster usually based on that particular issue’s feature story. The publishers were art directors Larry Brill and Les Waldstein who were the original designers for the pornographic weekly tabloid Screw and also for Famous Monsters of Filmland and other Jim Warren publications in the late 1960s.”

This cheap-newsprint tabloid ran until 1976, when market forces drove it out of business. For kids of the early 1970s, The Monster Times was a vital publication. It covered the movies we loved, but without the corny tone or condescending attitude of other monster movie magazines. Contributing writers and photographers included Michael Uslan, Joe Kane, Doug Murray, Allan Asherman, Phil Seuling, Buddy Weiss, Frank Verzyl, Dean Latimer, Edward Summer, Joe Brancatelli, Manny Maris, and Jason Thomas (aka Tom Rogers). Contributing artists included Gray Morrow, Jeff Jones and Bernie Wrightson.

Now RRParks Cards has released The Monster Times Official Boxed Trading Card Collection. You’ll get cards that depict all 51 covers of The Monster Times, plus a mini foldee poster, a checklist, promo cards, a slipcover and a bonus creepy rubber bug. It’s all available for $24, shipping included.

This is a great little set that will induce multiple “squeeee’s” from fans of the original Monster Times. You can order it directly from RRParks Cards (scroll down the page) Or check out this page for more details.

The PopCulteer
December 4, 2015

So we are entering our fourth weekend of our insanely-long, 25,000-plus word PopCult Gift Guide for 2015, and your PopCulteer will take this space to implore you to support your local artists, craftspersons and other creative people this holiday season.

This weekend you have plenty of chances to go out and find large gatherings of local artisans hawking their wares. This makes it real easy to find cool stuff, and you might also get to hear some great music and maybe even find some munchies along the way.

RIVER ARTS SHOW AND SALE

Starting this evening, UUC hosts the annual RIVER ARTS SHOW AND SALE
This all takes place Friday Dec. 4 from 6:30 to 9:00 PM, and Saturday Dec. 5 from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. The promise “Wonderful ambiance and atmosphere, your holiday gift boutique.’’

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