To An Elevation of 1500 Panels: Comic Book Hinterlands, #9

By David Macpherson

How do we climb to the top of a comic? 

 

It's an absurd question, but there are a few comics where this makes sense. In 1967, Wham-O put out a comic book that was 52 pages and two feet high. It was called, naturally, Wham-O Giant Comics. It was not a success. Only one issue came out. Most of the copies never made it to stores; they languished in warehouses. 

 

Now, E. H. Riot, Royal Comic Explorer for the Queen, has taken the task of climbing all 1,500 panels of this comic. In letters written to his wife, he details each feature in the comic. He tells of the artists and the stories. He ponders who the correct audience for this comic was and why it didn't succeed. 

 

Join us for an adventure as Riot climbs up through a giant comic and lives to tell the tale. A different approach to comic history, An Elevation of 1,500 panels is a fun, humorous tour of a forgotten part of comic book history. 

 

The series, The Comic Book Hinterland, allows the reader many odd paths to travel in the world of esoteric comic books. Get your passport and go on the adventure!  

• Language: English
• Publisher: David Macpherson
• Release date: Jun 29, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201785208

Book preview

1

My Dearest Meredith,

As I take pen and paper on this momentous day, I think of the times we once had. I miss you terribly, and the children too. All of them.

I can say with much excitement and not a little trepidation, that I have reached base camp. I am looking at the behemoth that I will this day begin to scale. I have never seen such a sight. I hasten to add, that it is a sight that is enticing, but immense that if I stare at it too long, I am sure I will go mad.

I have scaled many great things. But this my dear, this will be my masterpiece of climbing.

I pity the so-called climbers who think that scaling an Everest or a K2 is a worthwhile and challenging endeavor. For that is just air and rock that you must contend with.

My climbing is more dangerous. My calling melds the body and the mind in a feat that is truly worth collecting and publishing as a book at a later date. (If you did not get the inference, I would be obliged if you would get the servants to transcribe these letters so they will be ready for publication. Thank you ever so much)

As you well know, for you are my beloved and I tell all of these pieces consistently to anyone who is willing to listen, I have climbed some of the great comic books in the world. I was able to overcome the height of the Masterworks of Fantastic Four. I flew up the side of Superman of the 1940s. I have slowly reached the top of Maus. I even challenged myself climbing uncompleted works such as Chester Brown’s Underwater. It ends on a cliff that resides next to a bottomless chasm that contains all the possible plots that were never employed.

Have I climbed the Treasury Editions that populated the landscape in the 1970s? Yes I have. I returned from those sojourns slightly battered and scarred from all the poor publishing. The running ink. The brittling paper. From the Jack Kirby 2001 Treasury Edition to Sheldon Moldorf’s Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer to the Star Wars comic. As big as life. But there are other comics bigger out there in the wild.

I have reached the pinnacle of all these comics and have recorded all my successes and failures (though there are precious few of those types of adventures. I tend to succeed.)

And now I have embarked on my most perilous mission. I will climb to the top, to the end of Wham-O Giant Comics #1 Published in 1967. It is 52 pages. It measures 14 inches by 21 inches. Meredith, this one is a monster. I am not afraid, for I am not that type of man. My ancestors did not raise a man afraid of any comic book.

From my vantage point at base camp, with the book still in its plastic bag and backing board, the book is in fine shape. That is because the comic was a major failure. I know you must think that an odd and confusing statement. Please, stay with me my dear, for my logic will win out in the end.

Wham-O is a niche marketer of odd toys. They popularized the hula hoop and the frisbee and other kitschy geegaws that made a profit for this family run company. They were brilliant with marketing their items. They put many commercials on the Saturday Morning Cartoon block that was such a blessing to toy and candy manufacturers. If the crux of advertising is to put your product in front of as many of the target audience as possible, then Saturday Morning Cartoon in the 60s was the finest way to have the kids of America know your wares.

In the mid-60s, they decided that the comic book business was a growing one. Bat-Man was a popular TV series. And the Marvel Comics Group were having success expanding the age range of their readers. It seemed like a great time to make a comic. (To be fair, it is always a fine time to make a comic. It is not always an advantageous moment to sell enough comics to make a profit. But making a comic is an evergreen chore.)

Wham-O wanted in on this market, but how to differentiate themselves from the muck and rabble? Why a larger product. How can you deny the lure of the big? The fast food magnates know the power of the large. They double size their meals. They make it large and immense. No one needs such calorie rich feast, but who can deny all of those burger patties and the cornucopia of fries and onion rings. They sell so much disposable food. Shouldn’t this thinking also be successful for the comic book. Instead of extra food, you will get extra panels of exciting drama and turmoil.

That must have been the thinking of the Wham-O brain trust.

They also decided to not bother with the magazine newsstand distribution problems. The comics were returnable and that means a large percentage of the comic books were to be returned and pulped. This was not a smart model that obviously did not survive for comics. Wham-O were a toy manufacturer and they would have to believe that anything they make is a toy. If they make a giant comic book, it is not a magazine, but the new toy by Wham-O.

It was to be sold in toy stores and department stores with large toy departments. They also made a difficult decision. With most comics going for twelve cents at the time, they decided to put their behemoth out for ninety eight cents. I believe that is a fine deal when you consider all the variables. For I am a grown, strapping man with the mental faculty of seven normal adults, I can see why it is a fine deal. But if I was a ten year old chap with an allowance of but twenty five cents, I would not even begin to consider making a purchase for Wham-O Giant Comics #1.

Those unnamed comic book connoisseurs can get two twelve cent comics from the drug store down the street. If they were so desirous, they could save up for four weeks and then talk their parents into driving them into town to the large toy store to pick up a comic they are not sure where they will store once they get it back home.

The book was not a success. They did not sell in the toy departments they were able to get into. Most toy and department stores did not order any. They did not see the value in giving up so much floor space for a toy store item they did not even believe to be a toy.

Most of the copies of the print run spent many years resting on its heels in warehouses. When they were discovered, they were disseminated to comic book shops. These shops had a hard time selling them as a back issue, because they were so large. It seems that comic book collectors only want items they can easily bag and board and put in boxes. I am not certain they even read these little wonders. I think they just take joy in storing them away as carefully as possible. It is about possession more than the