The Magnificent Superheroes of Comics Golden Age

    (Superlith, 1977)
™ and © 1977 Superlith Press

Most of the Golden Age superheroes that people remember were published by DC, Timely (Marvel), Fawcett and Quality. But from 1939-1945, there were literally dozens of publishing houses whose magazines crowded the racks, each hoping to strike paydirt with the next Superman or Batman. Most of these efforts were, frankly, pretty crude even by the unsophisticated standards of the time and rarely see the kind of deluxe reprinting treatment given to better known work. Readers interested in specimens from this era either pay high-dollar prices for originals in the Golden Age boxes of dealers, or can seek out the low-budget reprints done by fans and independent printers.

One useful and interesting reprint from the earlier days of comics fandom is The Magnificent Superheroes of Comics [sic] Golden Age, edited by one-time comic artist Don Rico (who also drew the cover) and offered by a Florida-based small press called Superlith. Published in 1977, MSCGA is a 128 page black and white comic featuring photocopied stories that give a fair representation of the second-tier Golden Age heroes.

Characters include the Hangman, the Shield, the original Daredevil, the Web, the Wizard, Magno and Davey, Blackjack, Lightning, Blue Bolt, Mr. Scarlet and Pinky, and Steel Sterling. Sharp-eyed readers may perceive the early art stylings of Jack Kirby, Irv Novick, and Charles Biro (along with Rico) through the often-muddy reproductions. Short on plot and character, long on action, and crammed with ill-explained heroes and preposterous developments, these stories are charming examples of the amateur enthusiasm and naked ambition lurking in the darker corners of comics’ earliest days.

— Rob Salkowitz
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