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More Fun Comics

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More Fun Comics
More Fun Comics#52 (Feb. 1940), debut of theSpectre;cover art byBernard Baily.
Publication information
PublisherNational Allied Publications
ScheduleMonthly:
#1–4, #7–90, #108–126
Bi-monthly:
#5–6, #91–107, #127
FormatOngoing series
Publication dateFebruary 1935 – November/December 1947
No.of issues127
Main character(s)Doctor Occult,The Spectre,Doctor Fate,Johnny Quick,Green Arrow,Aquaman,Superboy,"Jimminy and the Magic Book"

More Fun Comics,originally titledNew Fun: The Big Comic Magazine,[1]is a 1935–1947Americancomic bookanthologythat introduced several majorsuperherocharacters and was the first American comic book series to feature solely original material rather than reprints ofnewspapercomic strips.[2]It was also the first publication ofNational Allied Publications,the company that would becomeDC Comics.

Publication history[edit]

Cover photo of the first issue of the series.

In the latter half of 1934, having seen the emergence ofFamous Funniesand other oversize magazines reprinting comic strips,Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholsonfounded National Allied Publications and publishedNew Fun#1 on January 11, 1935[3](cover-datedFebruary 1935). A tabloid-sized, 10-inch by 15-inch, 36-page magazine with a cardstock, non-glossy cover, it was an anthology ofhumorfeatures, such as thetalking animalcomic "Pelion and Ossa" and the college-set "Jigger and Ginger", mixed with such dramatic fare as theWesternstrip "Jack Woods" and the "yellow peril"adventure" Barry O'Neill ", featuring aFu Manchu-styled villain, Fang Gow.[1]The first issue also featured humor strip "Caveman Capers", an adaptation of the 1819 novelIvanhoe,spy drama "Sandra of the Secret Service", and a strip based on an earlyWalt DisneycreationOswald the Lucky Rabbit.[2]

Most significantly, however, whereas some of the existing publications had eventually included a small amount of original material, generally as filler,New Fun#1 was the first comic book containing all-original material. Additionally, it carried advertising,[4]whereas previous comic books were sponsored by corporations such asProcter & Gamble,Kinney Shoes,andCanada Drybeverages, and ad-free.[5][6]

The first four issues were edited by futureFunnies, Inc.,founderLloyd Jacquet,[1][7]the next, after a three-month hiatus, by Wheeler-Nicholson himself.[8]Issue #6 (Oct. 1935) brought the comic-book debuts ofJerry SiegelandJoe Shuster,the future creators ofSuperman,who began their careers with the musketeer swashbuckler "Henri Duval" (doing the first two installments before turning it over to others) and, under the pseudonyms "Leger and Reuths", the supernatural adventurerDoctor Occult.[9]They would remain on the latter title through issue #32 (June 1938), following the magazine's retitling asMore Fun(issues #7–8, Jan.-Feb. 1936),[10]andMore Fun Comics(#9-on).[11]

In issue #101 (Feb. 1945), Siegel and Shuster introducedSuperboy,a teenage version of Superman, in a new feature chronicling the adventures of the Man of Steel when he was a boy growing up in the ruralMidwestern United States.[12]

With issue #108 (March 1946), all the superhero features were moved fromMore FunintoAdventure Comics.More Funbecame ahumortitle that spotlighted the children's fantasy feature "Jimminy and the Magic Book".[13]The series was canceled with issue #127 (Dec 1947).

Features include[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^abcNew Fun#v1#1 (Feb. 1935)at theGrand Comics Database.The entry notes that while the logo appears to be simplyFun,theindiciareads, "New FUN is published monthly at 49 West 45th Street, New York, N.Y., by National Allied Publications, Inc.; Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, President... Inquiries concerning advertising should be addressed to the Advertising Manager, New FUN,...."
  2. ^abCowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Manning, Matthew K.; McAvennie, Michael; Wallace, Daniel (2019).DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle.DK Publishing. p. 12.ISBN978-1-4654-8578-6.
  3. ^"New Fun Magazine for Juveniles Out".Brooklyn Daily Eagle.January 11, 1935.
  4. ^Newbold, Jamie (2018).The Forensic Comicologist: Insights from a Life in Comics.McFarland & Company.p. 127.ISBN978-1476672670.
  5. ^Yezbick, Daniel F. (2014)."Children's Comics".In Booker, M. Keith (ed.).Comics through Time: A History of Icons, Idols, and Ideas.Greenwood Publishing Group.p. 71.ISBN978-0313397509.
  6. ^Davin, Eric Leif (2005).Partners in Wonder: Women and the Birth of Science Fiction, 1926-1965.Le xing ton Books.p. 169.ISBN978-0739112663.
  7. ^New Fun#v1#4 (May 1935)at the Grand Comics Database.
  8. ^New Fun#v1#5 (Aug. 1935)at the Grand Comics Database.
  9. ^Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Manning, Matthew K.; McAvennie, Michael; Wallace, Daniel (2010).DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle.DK Publishing. p. 13.ISBN978-0-7566-6742-9.
  10. ^More Funat theGrand Comics Database.
  11. ^More Fun Comicsat theGrand Comics Database.
  12. ^SuperboyatDon Markstein's Toonopedia.Archivedfrom the original on June 14, 2017.
  13. ^"Jimminy and the Magic Book"atDon Markstein's Toonopedia.Archivedfrom the original on December 14, 2011.

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]

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