Sunday 12 January 2020

Charlton - Promotional Comics: Blue Bird [Charlton Comics Collection]

























Introduction


These are almost exact reprints of the originals.  The cover art has been cropped to accommodate the top bar where the store name is placed and the lower bar where the typical Blue Bird bullets are placed.
The following stores are known to have participated: R&S Shoe Store, Blue Bird Shoes, Big Shoe Store, GallenKamp's and Schiff's Shoes.

TITLES: 

Atomic Mouse #11-1961
Atomic Mouse #12 - 1961
Atomic Mouse #14 - 12c - 1962
Atomic Mouse #16- 12c - 1962

Black Fury #1 - 10c - 1959
Black Fury #3 - 10c - 1959
Black Fury #4 - 10c - 1959
Black Fury #5 - 10c - 1959 (also Wild Bill Hickok & Jingles)
Black Fury #6 - 10c - 1959 
Black Fury #8 - 10c - 1959 
Black Fury #9 - 10c - 1959
Black Fury #10 - 10c - 1961
Black Fury #12- 10c - 1961
Black Fury #14- 10c - 1962
Black Fury #15- 10c - 1962

Freddy #1 - 10c - 1960
Freddy #3 - 10c - 1960
Freddy #4 - 10c - 1960
Freddy #5 - 10c - 1959
Freddy #6 - 10c - 1959
Freddy #8 - 10c - 1960
Freddy #10 - 10c - 1961 (also My Little Margie)
Freddy #11 - 10c - 1961
Freddy #12 - 10c - 1961
Freddy #13 - 10c - 1961
Freddy #14 - 12c - 1962
Freddy #15 - 12c - 1962

Li'l Genius #1 -10c - 1959
Li'l Genius #3 -10c - 1959
Li'l Genius #4-10c - 1959
Li'l Genius #6 -10c - 1959
Li'l Genius #7 -10c - 1960 (also Goofy Rabbit, Timmy the Timid Ghost)
Li'l Genius #8 - 10c - 1960 (also Atomic Bunny)
Li'l Genius #9 - 10c - 1960
Li'l Genius #10 - 10c - 1960
Li'l Genius #11 - 10c - 1960
Li'l Genius #12- 10c - 1960
Li'l Genius #13- 10c - 1960
Li'l Genius #14 - 10c - 1960
Li'l Genius #15 - 10c - 1960
Li'l Genius #16- 10c - 1962
Li'l Genius #17 - 10c - 1963

Masked Raider #1 - 10c - 1959
Masked Raider #2 - 10c - 1959
Masked Raider #3 - 10c - 1959
Masked Raider #4 -10c - 1959
Masked Raider #5 - 10c - 1960?
Masked Raider #6 - 10c - 1960
Masked Raider #7 - 10c - 1960
Masked Raider #8 - 10c - 1960
Masked Raider #9 - 10c - 1960
Masked Raider #10 - 10c - 1961

Masked Raider #1 - 10c - 1959
Masked Raider #2 - 10c - 1959
Masked Raider #3 - 10c - 1959
Masked Raider #4 - 10c - 1959
Masked Raider #2 - 10c - 1960
Masked Raider #6 - 10c - 1960 (also Rocky Lane)
Masked Raider #7 - 10c - 1960 (also Rocky Lane)
Masked Raider #8 - 10c - 1960 (also Tex Ritter)
Masked Raider #9 - 10c - 1959
Masked Raider #10 - 10c - 1961 (also Wild Bill Hickok)

My_Little_Margie_017  -  1963

Mysteries of Unexplored Worlds #18 - 12c - ???

Peter_Paul_s_4_in_1_Jumbo_Comic_Book_pt._1
Peter_Paul_s_4_in_1_Jumbo_Comic_Book_pt._2

Silly_Pilly_Comics_001_Children_s_Comics_Inc._1950_36p_c2c

Six-Gun Heroes #6 - 10c - 1960 (Wyatt Earp, Wild Bill Hickok, Rocky Lane, Annie Oakley, Lash LaRue)
Six-Gun Heroes #7 - 10c - 1960?
Six-Gun Heroes #8 - 10c - 1960 (Wyatt Earp, Lash LaRue, Wild Bill Hickok, Annie Oakley)
Six-Gun Heroes #9 - 10c -
Six-Gun Heroes #10 - 10c - 1961
Six Gun Heroes #15
Six-Gun Heroes #16 - 12c? - 1962

Teenage Hotrodders #18 - 12c - 1964

Texas_Rangers_in_Action #15 - 12c - 1962
Texas_Rangers_in_Action #16 - 12c - 1962
Texas Rangers #17 - 12c - 1962

Timmy the Timid Ghost #1? - 10c - ???
Timmy the Timid Ghost #2__1959_
Timmy the Timid Ghost #3
Timmy the Timid Ghost #4
Timmy the Timid Ghost #6
Timmy the Timid Ghost #7 -10c - 1960
Timmy the Timid Ghost #8 - 10c - 1960
Timmy the Timid Ghost #9 - 10c - 1960
Timmy the Timid Ghost #2__1959_
Timmy the Timid Ghost #10
Timmy the Timid Ghost #11
Timmy the Timid Ghost #13
Timmy the Timid Ghost #14
Timmy the Timid Ghost #15
Timmy the Timid Ghost #16
Timmy the Timid Ghost #17

War_Heroes_018__1964___Charlton_Blue_Bird_Shoes___c2c_

Wild Bill Hickok #1 - 10c - 1959
Wild Bill Hickok #2 - 10c - 1959
Wild Bill Hickok #3 - 10c - 1959
Wild Bill Hickok #4- 10c - 1959
Wild Bill Hickok #5 - 10c - 1959

Wyatt Earp #12 -10c - 1961
Wyatt Earp #13 -10c - 1961
Wyatt Earp #14 - 12c - 1962
Wyatt Earp #18 - 12c - 1962

I have not used Overstreet's listing, because they come across as very vague and open to interpretation.

No doubt there were many more than this handful. But apparently none of the other genres Charlton excelled in (romance, war) were used, just humor, western and the odd hot rod.

The theory

My prolimenary hypothesis is that Charlton published two groups of giveaway comics for Blue Bird, which sold its shoes in stores with various names. One group was  brought out in 1959-1961, the other some years later, around 1964. The comics were sold over the counter or given to kids by the shop assistants, much to the appreciation of parents, who would be guaranteed their half hour of undisturbed shopping.

The comics still had "10c" or "12c" on them, to make them look like real comics rather than illustrated advertisement for the store. Typically, shoe ads only appeared on the inside and back covers.

Created by and © Ramon Schenk 2006. Additional data provided by Mike Ambrose and others.


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