Batman Comic Scene

[benday-dot]

I was sorting out some of my comic boxes the other day, basically refiling a tonne of stuff I had pulled, and came across this little blast from my 70's past I had all but forgotten about, tucked down the side of a long box. The actual Batman model which accompanied the little 8 page comic book (or rather I suppose the comic was doing the accompanying) has long since vanished, but now years later I thank my pack rat habit which has always forbade me from throwing out the slightest bit of comic book related ephemera. Anyway, below are a couple scans I made of the little Aurora Comic Scene comic book which came with the Batman model, that when constructed ressembled the first scan... Batman swinging from a decayed tree, batarang in hand. Quite cool actually back in '74.

The second scan is the centre piece splash page. If you can read the bottom of the scan it says... "Place your completed Batman Model in front of this exciting action backdrop for an outstanding 3-D effect!". I don't think I ever actually did that. Kind of a lame idea I always thought, but makes me laugh today.

But I was wondering... can anyone who is a bit a Batman expert tell if the little comic book is an original thrown in with the model to provide a "vivid" storyline to bring to life your completed model, or was the Len Wein scripted, Dick Giordano drawn comic actually liberally borrowed from any of DC's regular Batman titles of the early 70's. Alas, my Batman knowledge of the period is limited, but maybe someone else recognizes the art or scenario has some insight into this little blast from the past. I'll post more pages tomorrow if needed.

And while we're at it, does anyone else have any cool classic free promotional comic books that they recall, and perhaps mercifully preserved. Besides this Batman book I have the Action Comics #1 reprint from around 1974 I got out of paper towells or toilet paper during a family trip to Florida. I thought it was very cool at the time... and yep I still have it to!

[Cei-U!]

While I can't say so definitively, I believe this was done specifically for the Aurora re-issue. I have most of Wein's 70s Batman work and I don't recognise this story.

Cei-U!
I hazard a guess!

[JKCarrier]

I believe this was done specifically for the Aurora re-issue.

I'm pretty sure that's the case. All those Marvel & DC models had short comics with them... I remember a Dave Cockrum-drawn Superboy, a Herb Trimpe Hulk, and a Romita-drawn Spidey, among others. And yes, they all had that big blank panel in the middle that was supposed to serve as a "backdrop" for the model.

[pmpknface]

There's a Romita Spidey one too that had a Kraven story. ;)

[Red Oak Kid]

That Batman model first came out in the mid 60s and it did not have a comic then.

The comics were added in the early 70s. I bought the Tarzan model because the box art was done by Neal Adams and so was the comic. I threw the model away. I think originally, the Tarzan box art had been done by Russ Heath. There was an ad on the back of some DC comics in the 60s with the Russ Heath version.

Speaking of comics related items, the Erector set I got in the early 60s had a small comic booklet in it. It told the story of two schools who were having a science competition. One school's presentation put the audience to sleep, but the other school used Gilbert products to liven up their presentation. I think Gilbert also made chemistry sets and other educational toys. It was drawn by the guy who did most of the art for the American Comics Group, but I can't think of his name at the moment.

[Cei-U!]

That Batman model first came out in the mid 60s and it did not have a comic then.

It also had a different head than the '60s edition, one modeled* after the Adams/Aparo/Novick Batman.

* No pun intended

Cei-U!
I summon the facelift!

[Red Oak Kid]

It also had a different head than the '60s edition, one modeled* after the Adams/Aparo/Novick Batman.

* No pun intended

Cei-U!
I summon the facelift!

I dunno nuthin bout that, but I know that friggin cape weighed a ton and kept drooping down before the glue dried.

I summon the painful childhood memory.

[Cherokee Jack]

.

It was drawn by the guy who did most of the art for the American Comics Group, but I can't think of his name at the moment.

Ogden Whitney?

[Red Oak Kid]

Ogden Whitney?

I looked it up and I think it is John Rosenberger.

[benday-dot]

Thanks everyone for your expertise, and usual astounding depth of knowledge. The opinions expressed that the comic book was specifically done for the Aurora model was the one I'd been leaning toward as well. The backdrop splash page would be an awkward and unusual composition, with its exaggerated blank centre space, to have appeared for any other purposes than to serve, as suggested, as a means to exhibit your completed model. I supposed the only other alternative was that some panels had been reworked in a reprint reproduction specifically for the Aurora models. Prevailing opinion though would rule against it.

As addenda... Holy crap... you're right ROK, my model was certainly from the 70's, but I can tell you the cape continued to be a nightmare from decade to decade. That thing kept tipping over I now recall. Thanks for the painful memory!

It is interesting to note Cei-U, that even pieces of plastic were artfully molded from generation to generation to take on the characteristics of the print artists, after whose work the models were patently designed. So there's a recognizably Dick Giordano Batman on the pages of the comic book so there also is one in the world of plastic models. No less so than an Adams/Novick/Aparo Batman on the printed page, and in the subsequent.

I was going to track down any original comic, if one existed, by which Aurora/DC based its own little book, but it appears that the "creature" stands alone.... A little Wein/Giordano side project. Not that it was anything scintillating, but I did enjoy revisting an interesting comic book related 70's period piece. Thanks again all!