Showing posts with label 1978. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1978. Show all posts
Wednesday, 16 August 2017
Wednesday, 9 August 2017
1978: SUPERMAN POCKET BOOK (UK EDITION) ISSUE 1
From 1978: the first issue of SUPERMAN POCKETBOOK, a UK DC reprint title from London Editions/ Egmont.
Unlike the traditional British Pocket Libraries, this (and its BATMAN POCKETBOOK companion) was published with colour interiors. The upgraded production standards were made possible because London Editions (who eventually had a long - albeit intermittent - association with DC) were part of a bigger European outfit, and the digests appeared in other European markets with the black plates swapped out in favour of the local language during a single print run.
The sudden pan-European interest in the character was, of course, down to that year's SUPERMAN live-action movie.
The UK-only monthly THE SUPERHEROES followed, to limited success despite boasting attractive new covers and some vintage (albeit possibly dated) reprints from the DC vaults.
Once that title faltered, London Editions turned their attentions to other licensed fare scoring hits with the likes of MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE and MY LITTLE PONY and less success with the likes of THE CENTURIONS and BATTLE BEASTS.
But, towards the end of the decade, they rediscovered their DC mojo with a slate of new reprint titles (now in colour) beginning with - as you might expect - SUPERMAN. This expansion may have been prompted by the rising profile of DC characters (Superman celebrated his 50th with some hoopla, including a RADIO TIMES cover, in 1988), the post-CRISIS reboot of many of DC's top tier characters (making them more accessable to a wider audience), the impending BATMAN movie and MARVEL UK's retreat from the superhero market.
The new line, anchored by SUPERMAN and BATMAN but also including (at various times) HEROES, DC ACTION, ZONES and SHOCKWAVE, proved to be only a limited success and titles seemed to come and go (departing with little warning or fanfare) on a regular basis.
Robert Maxwell, now owner of the former IPC Youth Group rebadged Fleetway, managed to annoy Egmont's European bosses by snatching the Disney license. His ownership of MIRROR GROUP newspapers being a decisive factor in commiting to expose Disney's wares to the largest UK readership possible. Egmont's response was to buy into Fleetway, an offer that Maxwell (no doubt very aware of the financial mess buried at the heart of his media empire) found hard to resist. After his death, and the swift collapse of his crooked empire, Egmont bought the rest of Fleetway for a knockdown price.
Unlike the traditional British Pocket Libraries, this (and its BATMAN POCKETBOOK companion) was published with colour interiors. The upgraded production standards were made possible because London Editions (who eventually had a long - albeit intermittent - association with DC) were part of a bigger European outfit, and the digests appeared in other European markets with the black plates swapped out in favour of the local language during a single print run.
The sudden pan-European interest in the character was, of course, down to that year's SUPERMAN live-action movie.
The UK-only monthly THE SUPERHEROES followed, to limited success despite boasting attractive new covers and some vintage (albeit possibly dated) reprints from the DC vaults.
Once that title faltered, London Editions turned their attentions to other licensed fare scoring hits with the likes of MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE and MY LITTLE PONY and less success with the likes of THE CENTURIONS and BATTLE BEASTS.
But, towards the end of the decade, they rediscovered their DC mojo with a slate of new reprint titles (now in colour) beginning with - as you might expect - SUPERMAN. This expansion may have been prompted by the rising profile of DC characters (Superman celebrated his 50th with some hoopla, including a RADIO TIMES cover, in 1988), the post-CRISIS reboot of many of DC's top tier characters (making them more accessable to a wider audience), the impending BATMAN movie and MARVEL UK's retreat from the superhero market.
The new line, anchored by SUPERMAN and BATMAN but also including (at various times) HEROES, DC ACTION, ZONES and SHOCKWAVE, proved to be only a limited success and titles seemed to come and go (departing with little warning or fanfare) on a regular basis.
Robert Maxwell, now owner of the former IPC Youth Group rebadged Fleetway, managed to annoy Egmont's European bosses by snatching the Disney license. His ownership of MIRROR GROUP newspapers being a decisive factor in commiting to expose Disney's wares to the largest UK readership possible. Egmont's response was to buy into Fleetway, an offer that Maxwell (no doubt very aware of the financial mess buried at the heart of his media empire) found hard to resist. After his death, and the swift collapse of his crooked empire, Egmont bought the rest of Fleetway for a knockdown price.
Tuesday, 4 July 2017
1978: MERGER ALERT! 2000AD AND TORNADO
From August 1979: Merger Alert! Tharg reluctantly welcomes the refugees from another defunct IPC weekly with the first combined issue of 2000AD AND TORNADO. It is unlikely that anyone in King's Reach Tower, or indeed the nation at large, was celebrating.
The collapse of STARLORD, covered in a previous post, had been something of a shot-in-the-arm for 2000AD, shoving it out of a creative slump and introducing new strips that would become bedrocks of the title. Not so much with the scruffy band of survivors from TORNADO.
I think the cover designer was taking the pee slightly by announcing 'at last' considering Tornado had only mustered the IPC-standard 22 issues before the accounts department despatched it.
And, did anyone call their comics 'papers'? It's an IPC term (possibly also so used by their Dundee rivals... I didn't read many) that survived into the eighties. But, as a buyer, I never used the term and I don't know anyone who did. Not even my parents. Newspapers were papers. Magazines were magazines. And comics were comics. It has the whiff of an in-house term that they forgot no one in the real world used.
Not the nice rich colours on the cover as well. That's not some fancy bit of digital clean-up, the IPC weeklies really did have better printing prior to the 1980s shift to newsprint.
The collapse of STARLORD, covered in a previous post, had been something of a shot-in-the-arm for 2000AD, shoving it out of a creative slump and introducing new strips that would become bedrocks of the title. Not so much with the scruffy band of survivors from TORNADO.
I think the cover designer was taking the pee slightly by announcing 'at last' considering Tornado had only mustered the IPC-standard 22 issues before the accounts department despatched it.
And, did anyone call their comics 'papers'? It's an IPC term (possibly also so used by their Dundee rivals... I didn't read many) that survived into the eighties. But, as a buyer, I never used the term and I don't know anyone who did. Not even my parents. Newspapers were papers. Magazines were magazines. And comics were comics. It has the whiff of an in-house term that they forgot no one in the real world used.
Not the nice rich colours on the cover as well. That's not some fancy bit of digital clean-up, the IPC weeklies really did have better printing prior to the 1980s shift to newsprint.
Thursday, 29 June 2017
1978: MERGER ALERT: 2000AD and STARLORD
From October 1978: The first combined issue of 2000AD AND STARLORD.
Most mergers tended to be half-hearted affairs with incoming strips shoehorned into the existing title (and foisted on an editorial team who had no part in their creation or interest in their long-term success) at the behest of the circulation department in the hopes that some of the readers of the just-defunct book would switch sides and start reading the victorious weekly.
This tie-up, it has to be said, is probably one of the most successful in the STARLOGGED era. Not only did it give Tharg a stonking line-up of strips but the arrival of Strontium Dog and Ro-Busters transferred two strips that would become synonymous with the galaxy's greatest.
I've seen some reports that suggest that STAR LORD was still actually outselling Tharg when the decision was made to close it. The logic being that its sales were dropping faster - and it was a more pricy proposition - so the older of the two weeklies was deemed to have the best long-term chances of survival. At least that turned out to be right.
Tharg didn't make a habit of providing sanctury to his fallen colleagues. After the less successful merger of TORNADO, the alien editor put a stop to all future shotgun weddings and - after a bedding-in period - the EAGLE became IPC/ Fleetway's main vehicle for mergers as the the number of victims really started to pile up.
Most mergers tended to be half-hearted affairs with incoming strips shoehorned into the existing title (and foisted on an editorial team who had no part in their creation or interest in their long-term success) at the behest of the circulation department in the hopes that some of the readers of the just-defunct book would switch sides and start reading the victorious weekly.
This tie-up, it has to be said, is probably one of the most successful in the STARLOGGED era. Not only did it give Tharg a stonking line-up of strips but the arrival of Strontium Dog and Ro-Busters transferred two strips that would become synonymous with the galaxy's greatest.
I've seen some reports that suggest that STAR LORD was still actually outselling Tharg when the decision was made to close it. The logic being that its sales were dropping faster - and it was a more pricy proposition - so the older of the two weeklies was deemed to have the best long-term chances of survival. At least that turned out to be right.
Tharg didn't make a habit of providing sanctury to his fallen colleagues. After the less successful merger of TORNADO, the alien editor put a stop to all future shotgun weddings and - after a bedding-in period - the EAGLE became IPC/ Fleetway's main vehicle for mergers as the the number of victims really started to pile up.
Wednesday, 10 May 2017
1978: STARLOG MAGAZINE TV PREVIEW
From 1978: More small-screen previews from STARLOG MAGAZINE: BRAVE NEW WORLD; MORK AND MINDY (the show that killed BATTLESTAR... despite being on the same team); teleflick MANDRAKE; PROJECT UFO and the FANTASTIC FOUR cartoon responsible for one of the biggest urban legends of the Star Age...
Tuesday, 9 May 2017
1978: STARLOG PREVIEWS BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
From 1978: Another STARLOG MAGAZINE preview for BATTLESTAR GALACTICA.
Which somehow manages to make the opening night look a lot less exciting than it actually was. What's with all the old folk when you have handsome heroes and hefty hardware?
It feels like a piece put together for a magazine with a much older readership. Who might just be tempted to tune in to seee the stars they remembered from their youth in this new-fangled space romp...
Monday, 8 May 2017
1978: STARLOG'S BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25TH CENTURY PREVIEW
From 1978: another early STARLOG MAGAZINE preview for BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25TH CENTURY, including some seldom-seen pre-production art.
The piece gives a very different look to the nightime in Old Chicago scenes, the strongest and most memorable sequence in the debut movie. It's interesting to see the very different visual look for Buck and Twiki as well as - to my eyes - some inspiration from the cantina sequence in STAR WARS (which, lets be honest, seemed to 'inspire' a lot of other SF producers for at least the next decade).
Interesting to note that this was published when the plan was still to deliver a three-flick deal to NBC (a similar deal to the one that Universal initially cut with ABC for BATTLESTAR GALACTICA) with the option of more movies, or a series, later. The plan was scrapped when Universal clawed back the first TV movie and released it as a movie. Before going back to the broadcaster and signing a deal for the weekly series... which just happened to include that recent blockbuster 'movie'.
Funny also to see that the lack of really alien aliens is signposted from the get-go and also funny to see that Tigerman gets a mention as - on screen - he's essentially just a fat body builder in a cheap costume.
The piece gives a very different look to the nightime in Old Chicago scenes, the strongest and most memorable sequence in the debut movie. It's interesting to see the very different visual look for Buck and Twiki as well as - to my eyes - some inspiration from the cantina sequence in STAR WARS (which, lets be honest, seemed to 'inspire' a lot of other SF producers for at least the next decade).
Interesting to note that this was published when the plan was still to deliver a three-flick deal to NBC (a similar deal to the one that Universal initially cut with ABC for BATTLESTAR GALACTICA) with the option of more movies, or a series, later. The plan was scrapped when Universal clawed back the first TV movie and released it as a movie. Before going back to the broadcaster and signing a deal for the weekly series... which just happened to include that recent blockbuster 'movie'.
Funny also to see that the lack of really alien aliens is signposted from the get-go and also funny to see that Tigerman gets a mention as - on screen - he's essentially just a fat body builder in a cheap costume.
1978: THE DOCTOR STRANGE TV MOVIE IN STARLOG MAGAZINE
From 1978: More late Seventies small-screen superhero shenanigans: the done-in-one DOCTOR STRANGE TV MOVIE.
The teleflick - which could never hope to compete with the recent big-screen blockbuster so don't even bother mocking its 'limited' ambitions - is a few notches above the two CAPTAIN AMERICA movies but not quite in the league of THE INCREDIBLE HULK. US TV certainly liked to indulge in supernatural scarefare during this golden age of small-screen movies and critics would be better off looking at it in that context than comparing it with the mega-budget SFX-fests of today.
The release of the new movie reminded Universal that they still had this in their vaults and they released it on DVD just before the film opened, giving fans of the era and teleflick collectors a chance to upgrade their bootlegs.
The teleflick - which could never hope to compete with the recent big-screen blockbuster so don't even bother mocking its 'limited' ambitions - is a few notches above the two CAPTAIN AMERICA movies but not quite in the league of THE INCREDIBLE HULK. US TV certainly liked to indulge in supernatural scarefare during this golden age of small-screen movies and critics would be better off looking at it in that context than comparing it with the mega-budget SFX-fests of today.
The release of the new movie reminded Universal that they still had this in their vaults and they released it on DVD just before the film opened, giving fans of the era and teleflick collectors a chance to upgrade their bootlegs.
Friday, 5 May 2017
1978: THE SMALL-SCREEN SUPERHERO BOOM
From 1978: Back to the first superhero screen boom: the explosion of superpowered TV shows that filled the airwaves - with various degrees of commercial and creative success - back in the late 1970s.
This STARLOG MAGAZINE article is a fun upsum of what was shooting at the time... And also demonstrates the lack of attention to detail by studio publicity people who sem to be quite happy for pictures of the Green Goliath to circulate... in slippers! It is possible to see them by attentive viewing of the DVD's (and probably more so on the HD releases) but they have a picture quality above-and-beyond how anyone watched the show when it first aired. But a still in a national (international!) magazine is something else. But it is fun. The picture is - incidentally - from the TERROR IN TIME SQUARE location shoot.
This STARLOG MAGAZINE article is a fun upsum of what was shooting at the time... And also demonstrates the lack of attention to detail by studio publicity people who sem to be quite happy for pictures of the Green Goliath to circulate... in slippers! It is possible to see them by attentive viewing of the DVD's (and probably more so on the HD releases) but they have a picture quality above-and-beyond how anyone watched the show when it first aired. But a still in a national (international!) magazine is something else. But it is fun. The picture is - incidentally - from the TERROR IN TIME SQUARE location shoot.
Thursday, 4 May 2017
1978: STARLOG TEASES THE BUCK ROGERS THAT NEVER WAS
From 1978: A STARLOG MAGAZINE tease of the BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25TH CENTURY that never was.
Before NBC and Universal drafted Glen Larson in to retool the concept (giving him yet another chance to dust off his desire to create a small-screen JAMES BOND clone. See also: His pre-series SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN teleflicks) as a flip-flopping series of TV movies > feature film > TV series (depending on where you are in the timeline of the convoluted development process) the show was in the care of others... and would have looked very different.
Some of the design work here (which looks a little of the Airfix model variety) would have looked very clunky in the wake of STAR WARS so Larson's more polished approach probably was the way to go. Biddi Biddi!
Before NBC and Universal drafted Glen Larson in to retool the concept (giving him yet another chance to dust off his desire to create a small-screen JAMES BOND clone. See also: His pre-series SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN teleflicks) as a flip-flopping series of TV movies > feature film > TV series (depending on where you are in the timeline of the convoluted development process) the show was in the care of others... and would have looked very different.
Some of the design work here (which looks a little of the Airfix model variety) would have looked very clunky in the wake of STAR WARS so Larson's more polished approach probably was the way to go. Biddi Biddi!
Friday, 28 April 2017
1978: STARLOG (RE)LAUNCHES CINEMAGIC AND ALMOST LAUNCHES FANTASTICA
From 1978: two more early editions to the growing line-up of STARLOG GROUP spin-offs... the acquisition of special-effects-how-to guide CINEMAGIC and chuck-in-a-bit-of-everything Starlog spin-off FANTASTICA.
Fantastica? Err... yup. Before FANGORIA became a gore-soaked blood bath of a horror mag (and a successful franchise in its own right) it was a muddle of horror, SF, fantasy and almost anything else the publisher decided to include. And before it was called FANGORIA, it was promoted as Fantastica. Starlog, which didn't always have the best of luck with naming new launches (see also: COMICS SCENE) then promptly found themselves being sued by the publisher of FANTASTIC FILMS, who claimed readers would be confused. Starlog paused... and rebooted as Fangoria. Only to find no-one was buying.
The fantasy theme of the early issues left readers cold... but there was a response to the horror elements. So, from issue 7, the emphasis shifted and a legend was (re)born.
Fantastica? Err... yup. Before FANGORIA became a gore-soaked blood bath of a horror mag (and a successful franchise in its own right) it was a muddle of horror, SF, fantasy and almost anything else the publisher decided to include. And before it was called FANGORIA, it was promoted as Fantastica. Starlog, which didn't always have the best of luck with naming new launches (see also: COMICS SCENE) then promptly found themselves being sued by the publisher of FANTASTIC FILMS, who claimed readers would be confused. Starlog paused... and rebooted as Fangoria. Only to find no-one was buying.
The fantasy theme of the early issues left readers cold... but there was a response to the horror elements. So, from issue 7, the emphasis shifted and a legend was (re)born.
Thursday, 20 April 2017
1978: KISS MEETS THE PHANTOM OF THE PARK IN STARLOG MAGAZINE
From 1978: Another slice of bonkers US genre TV which - unless you are a KISS fan - has been largely forgotten today (and it is very possible that they - like the band - would like to forget it as well): KISS MEETS THE PHANTOM OF THE PARK, a US TV movie previewed in the pages of STARLOG MAGAZINE.
I've seen this movie - as a bootleg - several times over the years and I still can't make any sense of it. The plot - such as it is - is all over the place and involves a theme park (not, for once, the Universal backlot tour), superhuman rockers, a mad scientist and robot doubles. It's telling that the movie was a rare wander into the realm of live action for the folks at Hanna Barbera.
The TV movie aired on US TV for Halloween 1978 and subsequently popped up in overseas theatres and on home video, sometimes under alternative titles and with alternative edits.
Years ago I spotted in a magazine, which I don't have, that there was some talk (and pre-production) of a KISS animated series.... but the project stalled for whatever reason.
I've seen this movie - as a bootleg - several times over the years and I still can't make any sense of it. The plot - such as it is - is all over the place and involves a theme park (not, for once, the Universal backlot tour), superhuman rockers, a mad scientist and robot doubles. It's telling that the movie was a rare wander into the realm of live action for the folks at Hanna Barbera.
The TV movie aired on US TV for Halloween 1978 and subsequently popped up in overseas theatres and on home video, sometimes under alternative titles and with alternative edits.
Years ago I spotted in a magazine, which I don't have, that there was some talk (and pre-production) of a KISS animated series.... but the project stalled for whatever reason.
1978: BATTLESTAR GALACTICA'S MAREN JENSEN TALKS TO STARLOG MAGAZINE
From 1978: BATTLESTAR GALACTICA beauty Maren Jensen talks to STARLOG MAGAZINE.
Mareen's character, despite winning the show its second TV GUIDE cover, was slowly phased out over the single season, vanishing completely from the final few episodes... even when it would have made story sense for her to appear. Some sources have attributed this to her general lack of acting experience (although I've always found her performance on the show fine) whilst others have chalked it up to the overall trend of simplifying the show from mid-season onwards. Either way, it's a shame that she didn't stick with the show... and that the show didn't run longer in its original form.
Mareen's character, despite winning the show its second TV GUIDE cover, was slowly phased out over the single season, vanishing completely from the final few episodes... even when it would have made story sense for her to appear. Some sources have attributed this to her general lack of acting experience (although I've always found her performance on the show fine) whilst others have chalked it up to the overall trend of simplifying the show from mid-season onwards. Either way, it's a shame that she didn't stick with the show... and that the show didn't run longer in its original form.
Thursday, 8 December 2016
1978: COMIC MEDIA NEWS INTERNATIONAL ISSUE 36
From June/ July 1978: the 36th issue of British fanzine COMIC MEDIA NEWS INTERNATIONAL, edited and published by Richard Burton.
Thursday, 22 September 2016
1978: OUTER SPACE MAGAZINE ISSUE 1
From 1978: OUTER SPACE, a one-shot (?) quickie entry into the SF magazine genre, spawned by the success of you-know-what.
It's a British title published by an outfit called Rathbourne. I stumbled across this copy recently, the one-and-only time I have ever seen it.
The cover is very "that'll do" but the contents were OK considering the undemanding times they appeared in.
It's a British title published by an outfit called Rathbourne. I stumbled across this copy recently, the one-and-only time I have ever seen it.
The cover is very "that'll do" but the contents were OK considering the undemanding times they appeared in.
Tuesday, 30 August 2016
1978: COMIC MEDIA NEWS INTERNATIONAL ISSUE 37
From September 1978: issue 37 of the British fanzine COMIC MEDIA NEWS INTERNATIONAL with some bad news for DC, IPC and fans of Howard T. Duck.
Tuesday, 5 July 2016
1978: AMERICAN CINEMATOGRATHER COVERS CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
From January 1978: AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER features extensive coverage of the filming and production of Spielberg's CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND.
This is the first issue of the 59th volume.
This is the first issue of the 59th volume.
Thursday, 24 March 2016
1978: STAR WARS IN FILMS AND FILMING MAGAZINE
*** WARNING: NUDITY AHEAD ***
From February 1978: Here's the sort of cover juxtaposition that probably makes Lucasfilm cringe... the UK's FILMS AND FILMING magazine marks the belated British release of STAR WARS.
The SW still looks to be one of the more unusual ones to me... it doesn't look as familiar as some of the publicity stills that appeared literally everywhere.
Thursday, 11 February 2016
1978: CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND OFFICIAL MAGAZINE (WARREN)
From 1978: Warren's officially licensed CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND MAGAZINE.
The cover blurb says it all: typical of the time (and the publisher), this had black & white interiors printed on newsprint. The contents were the usual mix of pieces directly related to the film and broader pieces about movie aliens. All fairly undemanding stuff.
The cover designer clearly knew what would tickle the fancy of alien obsessed Star Warriors: a close up of an alien from the much discussed climax.
Friday, 5 February 2016
1978: STAR WARS NOVELIZATION 'BY' GEORGE LUCAS
From 1977 (although this printing hails from the following year): the novelization of STAR WARS (latterly A NEW HOPE).
Credited to George Lucas, it was actually penned by Alan Dean Foster (at least Larson shared the credit on the Battlestar and Knight Rider novels he didn't write) and published ahead of the film itself (spoilers!) because, like the Marvel tie up, it was seen as essential to boosting the profile of the film in the run up to the release.
I've not read this for decades (this isn't my original, I found it recently in a secondhand book shop) despite the numerous reprinting but it was an essential part of any Star Heroes collection back in the Star Age.
Like the Marvel adaptation and, a bit later, the radio drama, this played fast and loose with the final screen version because it had to be written and signed off far in advance of picture lock on the film itself.
Foster had a two book deal with Lucas and also penned the print sequel SPLINTER OF THE MIND'S EYE (another mainstay of the SF shelves in WH Smith throughout the early 1980s) which, when commissioned, was envisaged as a potential low cost screen sequel. The cash rolled in and Lucas was able to discard it in favour of a more ambitious second act.
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