ADVENTURES INTO WEIRD WORLDS #s 13 & 25 * Sinnott's Sig a Sin, or Not? * Angry Villagers & Skinny

Author:
Title: ADVENTURES INTO WEIRD WORLDS Nos. 13 and 25 * Lot of Two Comics
Place Published:
Publisher:Atlas [Indicia: Animirth Comics, Inc.]
Date Published: December, 1952-January, 1954
Description: #13: VG (4.0). Spine ticks and rubs, mild edgewear, a few short tears, corner creases. Nice and flat, a clean copy. Cream to off-white pages. GPAnalysis: No reported sales in this grade. A 3.5 sold for $232 in 12/21.

#25: VG- (3.5). Spine stress, 1/2" splits to spine ends, 3/4" tear, a few small nicks and edge chips, small chip to bottom right corner of front cover, bottom staple pulled. Cream to light tan pages. GPAnalysis: A 3.5 sold for $268 in 11/21. Note: 2nd page of Joe Sinnott's "Nightmare!" signed in the bottom margin: "Joe Sinnott."

Covers: Bill Everett, Joe Maneely. Art: Carmine Infantino (Gil Kane inks?), Don Rico, Don Perlin, Jerry Robinson, Bill Everett, Joe Sinnott, Sam Kweskin, Paul Reinman, Joe Maneely.Wertham's Ad Jihad: Pair of fright rags chockablock with traditional terror tropes, including angry villagers packin' pitchforks, a mad scientist animating a creature with electricity ("IT'S ALIVE!"), a red devil with horns and goatee, African idol-worshippers who call every white guy they meet "Bwana," etc. Also abounding in insecurity-inducing ads targeting sad sacks of all ages, including one in which a bag-of-bones boy is dissed by curvy cuties ("There's that skinny scarecrow Roger. Let's pass him by!"), and one in which a fat geezer regains his moxie thanks to a male girdle compressing his gut blubber ("I feel like a kid again – It's GREAT!"). According to Dr. Wertham, comic books and their ecosystem of penny-ante ads formed a feedback loop of neuroticism that preyed upon the vulnerabilities of impressionable nincompoops:

"Comic-book stories teach violence, the advertisements provide the weapons. The stories instill a wish to be a superman, the advertisements promise to supply the means for becoming one. Comic-book heroines have super-figures; the comic-book advertisements promise to develop them. The stories display the wounds; the advertisements supply the knives. The stories feature scantily-clad girls; the advertisements outfit the peeping Toms." – Dr. Fredric Wertham, Seduction of the Innocent. Rinehart & Co.: 1954, p. 217.

Sinnott's Sig a Sin, or Not? Joe Sinnott's yarn in ish #25 ("Nightmare") is autographed in the margin by Mr. Sinnott himself. Old-school autograph hounds tended to have their funnybooks signed on the interiors, preserving the integrity of the cover art, unlike the slab-happy Signature Series-centric John Hancock hankerers of today, who don't seem to mind unsightly Sharpie scrawls all over their comics' covers. Which begs a question of commodity aesthetics: is Sinnott's sub-surface signature a sin... or not?______________________________________________________________

A limited edition of ten hardcover catalogues is available, in addition to a few dozen softcovers. Fun reference, great keepsake, fully illustrated, chockablock with obscure facts, gags, bon mots. Softcovers are $40, deluxe hardcovers with dust jackets and limitation plates are $200. These books always go fast so don't delay. To order, contact ivan@pbagalleries.com.

Consignments welcome for PBA's Summer 2024 Comic Book sale. Top prices for Pre-Code Horror, Golden Age, Silver Age, original art and ephemera. Find out why PBA is the new fan-fave of funnybook fiends. "This is some of the best commentary I've yet seen on the quality of the content of comic books... Priceless." – R. Crumb. Send inquiries to ivan@pbagalleries.com.

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