Comics UK

I've just received my copy of IDW's new book collecting the Silver Age Batman newspaper strips from 1966-67 and it's everything I hoped for and more! For any fan of Silver Age DC comics these 250 pages of colour Sundays and black & white Dailies are virtually indispensible, but they are also highly interesting from a British perspective since most of them were adapted for the cover of Odhams' Smash! from the 20th issue of that title.



It's great fun comparing the British versions with their American originals. As can be seen from the examples shown below Odhams' editors were careful to alter transatlantic spellings and slang ('pearls' for 'poils', 'tin of beans' for 'can of hash' and 'axe' for 'hatchet', etc.) in much the same way they did with the Marvel strips that appeared in their comics. Rather more surprising, however, is the way in which they frequently missed out whole chunks of continuity for no apparent reason. For anybody with an interest in British or American comics of the 1960s I really can't recommend this beautifully produced book highly enough! (now if only somebody could start reprinting our own classic newspaper strips in a similar format...!)







- Phil Rushton

The Smash reprints must have been following the original publication date very closely if they were both appearing in 1966. There was one issue of Smash (no.34) where Batman didn't appear because Odhams hadn't received the stats of the strips in time, so they featured the Hulk on the cover instead:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_448y6kVhntg/R ... MASHES.jpg

Yes, the first American episode is dated May 29th - only about three weeks before Smash! no.20. It shows how desperate everybody was to jump on the 'Batmania' bandwagon!

- Phil R.

I believe Batman debuted on tv here around easter 1966- and it was not only an immediate hit but had been incessantly trailed for a few weeks to increasing anticipation! We saw the dynamic duo bursting out of that stuffed mammoth a couple of times a day! So the first Batman in the 18th June 1966 issue of SMASH! (No 20) was a bit of a coup for Odhams. I remember it all well because June 20th is my birthday and the lead up was always exciting! I kept issues 20, 22, 23 and 24 (as well as issues 3 and 17) all through the 60s and 70s. (And indeed still have them.)

I e-mailed my mate Steve about this and he replied thus:

that is like what I told you about the Spiderman reprints in the later TV21, with dialogue that was too American altered, where they even had a panel where a Fleetway artist redrew Peter Parker, looking nothing like the Romita version of course! In the final issue, they wrapped up the story of Spidey 92 by cutting it off half way through and changing all the dialogue and captions.

NP wrote:I believe Batman debuted on tv here around easter 1966- and it was not only an immediate hit but had been incessantly trailed for a few weeks to increasing anticipation!

I can remember that a Bob Kane-style drawing of Batman appeared in full colour on the cover of TV Times as well! For somebody who'd always thought of American comics as a guilty pleasure it seemed like my birthday too!

- Phil R.

What an appropriate day to start this thread!

http://www.historytoday.com/richard-cav ... -his-debut