I'll have to thank CBC'ers Joe Sokolowski and John Platt for putting this topic in my frame of consciousness. About two months ago (Mar. 8, 2017) Joe asked readers in a Google+ post in the Comic Book Community about comic book themed posters from their youth (or present). John recalled a blacklight poster of Doctor Strange and eventually found the image online.
Just recently I was cleaning off a rarely used bookcase and found a small thin catalog from a novelty retailer in Englewood Cliffs, NJ named Collywobbles. The catalog was a bit acidified but otherwise had slight normal wear, despite obviously dating from the early 1970's. Among the items offered for mail order was the two page spread below:
A little research showed that these were printed in 1971 by a New York based company called Third Eye. There were 24 in all, three of which (Conan by Barry Smith, Sub-mariner with Spider-man and Blackbolt) are missing here. In the past five years or so a promotional poster with all 24 was auctioned off for hundreds but something this catalog has that the poster didn't is the stock numbers that Third Eye used for orders. The posters in the catalog account for #'s 4001 through 4022, except for 4014, which must be one of the three missing. The other two must be 4023 and either 4024 or, depending on where the numbering starts, possibly 4000. It doesn't say here, but the posters measure 21.50" X 33.00".
Nine of these images were also among those used for 24 greeting cards (6.25" X 9.00") produced by Third Eye. There were jigsaw puzzles produced, too, but I haven't yet found images of them. I don't know why the cards and puzzles weren't included in the catalog, unless the catalog itself is from 1971 and the other licensed items came out in 1972. Maybe not. In any event, I'll keep an eye peeled for similar advertisements with information on out of print merchandise. My main interest, though, is still going to be taking stock of the the actual items lying around.
Just recently I was cleaning off a rarely used bookcase and found a small thin catalog from a novelty retailer in Englewood Cliffs, NJ named Collywobbles. The catalog was a bit acidified but otherwise had slight normal wear, despite obviously dating from the early 1970's. Among the items offered for mail order was the two page spread below:
A little research showed that these were printed in 1971 by a New York based company called Third Eye. There were 24 in all, three of which (Conan by Barry Smith, Sub-mariner with Spider-man and Blackbolt) are missing here. In the past five years or so a promotional poster with all 24 was auctioned off for hundreds but something this catalog has that the poster didn't is the stock numbers that Third Eye used for orders. The posters in the catalog account for #'s 4001 through 4022, except for 4014, which must be one of the three missing. The other two must be 4023 and either 4024 or, depending on where the numbering starts, possibly 4000. It doesn't say here, but the posters measure 21.50" X 33.00".
Nine of these images were also among those used for 24 greeting cards (6.25" X 9.00") produced by Third Eye. There were jigsaw puzzles produced, too, but I haven't yet found images of them. I don't know why the cards and puzzles weren't included in the catalog, unless the catalog itself is from 1971 and the other licensed items came out in 1972. Maybe not. In any event, I'll keep an eye peeled for similar advertisements with information on out of print merchandise. My main interest, though, is still going to be taking stock of the the actual items lying around.
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