Two Questions: Remnants of Youth and the Women of Comedy!

Redartz:  I've been 'hogging the mike' lately , so here's a chance for those of  you who've been saving up a good topic. We are dealing with two questions this week; I'm providing one,  you get to submit the other. Fair is fair, right?

Question 1: Do you still have any of your original comics /toys/books/memorabilia from your youth? 

For many of us, those old toys and comics went away with the trash years ago, or were donated, or sold (my Mom did annual yard sales, and that's where many of my items went). Some things just 'disappeared' . I've no idea whatever happened to my old baseball cards ; when I was about 9 years old a neighbor who was a big Cincinnati Reds fan traded me a whole box of late 50's/early 60's Topps baseball cards. All he wanted were the Reds players I'd picked up among my 1970 Topps cards. That old box of cards would be quite a find now; but it vanished inexplicably before I even reached ten. Alas...

 Nonetheless, I do still have a number of the actual things I treasured back then. Several old red line Hot Wheels cars still reside upon a shelf in my home.

Also, did manage to keep a Topps  Willie Mays coin pulled from a pack  in 1971 (Mays was my favorite player)...

And, I still have a fossil fish my Dad bought me during a trip to Colorado in 1971 (that must have been a memorable year for me)...

 So how about you? What vintage originals managed to remain in your possession over the years ? And, what is our spectacular second question ?

Chew the Fat: The Golden Age of Nostalgia?

Redartz:  Hello all! I was thinking about the ever-beloved Bronze Age Babies the other day, and recalled how Karen and Doug would sometimes refer to our present time as a "Golden Age of Reprints". And I'd say they were quite correct to do so. But upon further consideration, I wondered if that could be taken a step further: are we living in the Golden Age of Nostalgia? Some thoughts to consider ...



 

As Karen and Doug discussed, the generous availability of reprints in many formats allows enjoyment of comics from all eras, all genres, all companies (or most, anyway). From Omnibus volumes to digital comics, tpb's to archived free Golden Age stories, just about anything and everything comics can be found. 

But the same can be said for animation, and for television shows: with YouTube, DVDs and streaming, much of entertainment history is there for the picking. I find YouTube to be a wonderful source of almost-forgotten clips from the Bronze Age, the 60's, and everywhen. And, my wife and I recently ditched the satellite tv for an Amazon Firestick and an actual antenna for local broadcasts. I was pleasantly surprised by all the goodies to be seen on these free channels: "MeTV" for instance. It's been Retro Saturday Nights at our house, watching the Incredible Hulk, Wonder Woman, Twilight
Zone, Batman and Star Trek! Another freebie channel shows "Emergency", and yet another fills my wife's afternoons with westerns. 



 

But wait, there's more. Video games? Now we have classic arcade games being released on retro styled systems, and some are available as apps for your phone or tablet (still waiting for an authentic version of "Galaga"). 



 




 



Toys? There are many 'retro' versions coming out of vintage playthings. And of course there's Ebay for the real stuff. 




 










Music? My wife has Sirius Satellite radio, and can select exclusive stations for any decade from the 1940's onward. CD's are cheap just about any flea market you hit. Vinyl is back, and growing (who would have thought; if the next phase is VHS tapes I wouldn't be surprised). 



You get the idea; no matter what your nostalgic area of interest, there is unprecedented access to incredible amounts of material both physical and digital. And so, perhaps this is the Golden Age of Nostalgia after all. What say you?

Two Questions: Comics You Grew to Love, and Early Toys

Redartz:  For your consideration today, here are two questions that will require you to think back a bit (one much further than the other, admittedly). Let's get right to them:

1.  Was there ever a comic book, series, character (or creator) that you initially despised; then later came to appreciate, even love?

2.   What is the first toy you remember having as a child?

As is our custom here, I'll give my answers to get things started.


1.  Anything by Gil Kane. No, it was nothing personal; I just didn't like his artwork at all. When I first started reading comics, his covers were everywhere on Marvel publications. I just couldn't get past the nasal shots and sometimes contorted positions. And , it seemed many of those covers looked alike, especially the Conan covers. However, over the years, his style grew on me. By the time his stint on "Sword of the Atom" appeared, his art became something to look forward to. And he is my favorite penciller, under the inks of John Romita Sr, when it comes to the web slinger.

Okay, it wasn't this clock, but I had one of these too.

2.   The first toy I can recall having was a plastic clock. You know, the kind where you can move the hands around. It was green, and had see-through innards. I remember holding it on my parent's couch at the age of two. Can't remember much else that early, that toy clock must have been pretty important to me at the time...



Okay, now it's your turn- stretch that memory, think back, and remember!