| Strange Tales | |
|---|---|
-1.png) Cover ofStrange Tales #1 (June 1951), art byCarl Burgos | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| Schedule | Bimonthly, June 1951 – June 1952; monthly, July 1952 – Oct. 1953; bimonthly, Nov. 1953 – Feb. 1954; monthly, March 1954 – Aug. 1954; bimonthly Oct. 1954 – April 1955; monthly, June 1955 – June 1957; bimonthly Dec. 1957 – Oct. 1960; monthly, Nov. 1960 – May 1968 |
| Publication date | (vol. 1) June 1951 – May 1968 (vol. 1 revival) Sept. 1973 – Nov. 1976 (vol. 2) April 1987 – Oct. 1988 |
| No. of issues | (vol. 1) 168 (vol. 1 revival) 20 (#169–188) (vol. 2) 19 |
Strange Tales is aMarvel Comicsanthology series. The title was revived in different forms on multiple occasions.Doctor Strange andNick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. made their debuts inStrange Tales. It was a showcase for the science fiction/suspense stories of artistsJack Kirby andSteve Ditko, and for the groundbreaking work of writer-artistJim Steranko. Two previous, unrelated magazines also bore that title.
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The Marvel Comics series ran 168 issues,cover-dated June 1951 to May 1968.[1] It began as ahorror anthology from the company's 1950s precursor,Atlas Comics. Initially modeled after the gory morality tales of the popularEC line of comics,[2]Strange Tales became less outré with the 1954 establishment of theComics Code, which prohibited graphic horror, as well as vampires, zombies and other classical monsters.
The comic changed again with the return ofJack Kirby, the artist who had co-createdCaptain America for the company, then worked elsewhere for 17 years. Starting with #68 (April 1959),Strange Tales was revamped to reflect the then-current trend of science fiction monsters. Virtually every issue would open with a Kirby monster story (generally inked byChristopher Rule initially, then laterDick Ayers), followed by one or two twist-ending thrillers or sci-fi tales drawn byDon Heck,Paul Reinman, orJoe Sinnott, all capped by an often-surreal, sometimes self-reflexiveStan Lee-Steve Ditko short.
Some characters introduced here in standalone, anthological stories were laterretconned intoMarvel Universe continuity. These includeUlysses Bloodstone in the story "Grottu, King of the Insects!" in issue #73 (Feb. 1960),[3][4] the alien dragonFin Fang Foom, whofirst appeared in #89 (Oct. 1961),[5] and the extraterrestrial would-be world conquerorsGorgolla, introduced in #74 (April 1960), andOrrgo, introduced in #90 (Nov. 1961).[6]
InStrange Tales #75 (June 1960), a huge robot called "the Hulk" appeared. It was actually armor worn by the character Albert Poole. In modern-day reprints the character's name is changed to Grutan.[7]
Prototypes of the Spider-Man supporting charactersAunt May andUncle Ben appeared in a short story inStrange Tales #97 (June 1962).[8]
The anthology switched tosuperheroes during theSilver Age of Comic Books, retaining the sci-fi, suspense and monsters as backup features for a time.Strange Tales' first superhero, in 12- to 14-page stories, was theFantastic Four'sHuman Torch, Johnny Storm, beginning in #101 (Oct. 1962).[9] Here, Johnny still lived with his elder sister,Susan Storm, in fictional Glenview,Long Island, New York, where he continued to attend high school and, with youthful naivete, attempted to maintain his "secret identity" (laterretconned to reveal that his friends and neighbors knew of his dual identity from Fantastic Four news reports, but simply played along). Supporting characters included Johnny's girlfriend, Doris Evans. Ayers took over the penciling after 10 issues, later followed by originalGolden Age Human Torch creatorCarl Burgos and others, withJerry Siegel scripting issues #112–113 (Sept.–Oct. 1963) under the pseudonym "Joe Carter". The Fantastic Four made occasional cameo appearances, and theThing became a co-star with #123 (Aug. 1964).Strange Tales Annual #2 (1963) featured the first team-up of Spider-Man and the Human Torch.[10]
The title became a "split book" with the introduction of sorcererDoctor Strange, by Lee and Ditko. This 9- to 10-page feature debuted in #110 (July 1963),[11] and after an additional story and then skipping two issues returned permanently with #114. Ditko's surreal mystical landscapes and increasingly head-trippy visuals helped make the feature a favorite of college students, according to Lee himself.[12] Eventually, as co-plotter and later sole plotter, in the "Marvel Method", Ditko would take Strange into more abstract realms. Adversaries for the new hero includedBaron Mordo introduced in issue #111 (Aug. 1963)[13] andDormammu in issue #126 (Nov. 1964).Clea, who would become a longtime love interest for Doctor Strange, was also introduced in issue #126.[14]
Lee and Ditko interacted less and less as each went their separate creative ways. The storyline culminated with the introduction ofEternity, the personification of the universe, in issue #138 (Oct. 1965). Issue #146 (July 1966) was Ditko's final bow on the series.Bill Everett succeeded him through #152 (January 1967), followed byMarie Severin (self-inked for four issues before being inked byHerb Trimpe in some of his earliest Marvel work). Another cosmic entity, theLiving Tribunal, was introduced during Severin's run, in issue #157.Dan Adkins took over penciling duties from #161 (Oct. 1967) to the final issue, #168 (May 1968).
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The Human Torch and Thing had already been replaced in #135 (Aug. 1965) byNick Fury, asuperspy in keeping with the concurrentJames Bond/The Man from U.N.C.L.E. craze. The 12-page feature was initially by Lee and Kirby, with the latter supplying such enduring gadgets and hardware as theHelicarrier – an airborneaircraft carrier – as well as human-replicant LMDs (Life Model Decoys), and evenautomobileairbags.[15] The terrorist organizationHYDRA was introduced here as well.[16]
The feature "Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D." soon became the province of writer-penciler-coloristJim Steranko,[17] whoLes Daniels called "Perhaps the most innovative new talent to emerge at Marvel during the late 1960s".[18] Steranko introduced or popularized in comics such art movements of the day aspsychedelia andop art, built on Kirby's longstanding work inphotomontage, and created comics' first four-page spread[19] – again inspired by Kirby, who in the Golden Age had pioneered the first full-page and double-page spreads. He spun plots of intrigue, barely hidden sensuality, and hi-fi hipness – and supplying his own version ofBond girls, essentially, in skintight leather, pushing what was allowable under theComics Code at the time.[20]
"Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D." became the firstStrange Tales feature to receive its own cover logo below the main title, beginning with #135; it skipped an issue before returning permanently with #137. "Doctor Strange" received its own cover logo, designed bySol Brodsky,[21] withStrange Tales #150 (Nov. 1966).
Strange Tales ended with #168 (May 1968). The following month, Doctor Strange's adventures continued in the full-lengthDoctor Strange #169,[22] with Nick Fury moving to the newly launchedNick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Five years later,Strange Tales resumed its old numbering with #169 (Sept. 1973),[23] which introduced the supernatural featureBrother Voodoo by writerLen Wein and artistGene Colan. This lasted only to issue #173 (April 1974), with Brother Voodoo continuing briefly in theblack-and-white Marvel horror-comics magazineTales of the Zombie. This was followed by two different creative teams producing three stories ofThe Golem in three issues (#174, 176, 177), with #175 being a reprint of a pre-Silver Age monster comic.[24]
The next feature was writer-artist-coloristJim Starlin's take onAdam Warlock, picking up the character from the 1972–73 seriesWarlock (a.k.a.The Power of Warlock) and reviving him inStrange Tales #178 (Feb. 1975).[25] This feature introduced the charactersGamora,Pip the Troll andThe Magus, and helped establish the mythos Starlin would mine in his many "Infinity" sagas of the 1990s.[24] After issue #181 (Aug. 1975), the story continued inWarlock #9 (Oct. 1975), picking up from the old series' numbering.Strange Tales soldiered on with Doctor Strange reprints through issue #188 (Nov. 1976).[23]
After Doctor Strange's second series was canceled in the 1980s,Strange Tales was relaunched as vol. 2, #1 (April 1987).[26] A split book once again, it featured 11-page Doctor Strange andCloak and Dagger stories, the latter continuing fromCloak and Dagger #11. This ended with issue #19 (Oct. 1988), after which newDoctor Strange andCloak and Dagger series were launched.
A one-shot Human Torch, Thing, and Doctor Strange story, by writerKurt Busiek, with painted art byRicardo Villagran, was released in squarebound bookshelf format in 1994.[27] Another one-shot, the 52-pageStrange Tales: Dark Corners in 1998 was an anthology featuringMorbius,Gargoyle, Cloak and Dagger, andSpider-Man.[28] AStrange Talesminiseries featuringMan-Thing andWerewolf by Night was published in 1998 to tie up plotlines after their individual series had been canceled. Although four issues were solicited, only two issues of this volume saw print, and theconclusions of those storylines were never released.
In 2009 Marvel published a three-issueminiseries under theMarvel Knightsimprint. It featured comics writers and artists who normally create comics outside the superhero genre, such asStan Sakai,Jason, andMichael Kupperman, and later was collected as atrade paperback. A second three-issue volume was published under the titleStrange Tales II in 2010. The first issue of this second volume was under theMAXimprint. It included work byHarvey Pekar,Dash Shaw, andJhonen Vasquez.
From annual required Statement of Circulation. "Average circulation" refers to total print run. "Total paid circulation" refers to number of copies actually sold, which is the above number minus returns, lost/damaged copies, and free/promotional copies.
Strange Tales vol. 1
| Statement date / published in | Average circulation, preceding year | Average circulation, issue nearest filing date | Total paid circulation, preceding year | Total paid circulation, issue nearest filing date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 1, 1965 / #143 (April 1966) | 390,992 | 455,625 | 230,285 | 299,425 |
| October 1, 1966 / #155 (April 1967) | 420,036 | 474,529 | 261,069 | 276,225 |
Circulation figures from annual statements, charted as per-issue average paid circulation byMiller, John Jackson, et al.,TheStandard Catalog of Comic Books,Krause Publications, 2002, pp. 1007–1009.
| Issue range | Average paid circulation | Comics with annual circulation statement |
|---|---|---|
| #92–103 (Jan.–Dec. 1962) | 136,637 | n.a. |
| #–104–115 (Jan.–Dec. 1963) | 189,305 | # 121 (June 1964) |
| #116–127 (Jan.–Dec. 1964) | 215,090 | #131 (April 1965) |
| #128–139 (Jan.–Dec. 1965) | 230,285 | #143 (April 1966) |
| #140–151 (Jan.–Dec. 1966) | 261,069 | #155 (April 1967) |
| #152–163 (Jan.–Dec. 1967) | 241,561 | #167 (April 1968) |
| #164–168 (Jan.–May 1968) | 266,422 | n.a. |
Strange Tales vol. 2
Circulation figures fromCapital City Distribution orders, charted as per-issue paid circulation by Miller, John Jackson, et al.,The Standard Catalog of Comic Books, Krause Publications, 2002, p. 1009.
| Issue / Issue range | Capital City order range (variously, not in chronological order) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Vol. 2, # 1 (April 1987) | 25,100 | |
| Vol. 2, # 2 (May 1987) | 18,000 | |
| Vol. 2, # 3–8 (June–Nov. 1987) | 17,100 – 18,000 | |
| Vol. 2, # 9–12 (Dec. 1987 – March 1988) | 16,100 – 16,400 | |
| Vol. 2, # 9–11 (Dec. 1987 – Feb. 1988) | 16,100 – 16,400 | |
| Vol. 2, # 12 (March 1988) | 18,300 | Black Cat appearance |
| Vol. 2, # 13 (April 1988) | 19,100 | Punisher appearance |
| Vol. 2, # 14 (May 1988) | 17,600 | Punisher appearance |
| Vol. 2, # 15–18 (June–Sept. 1988) | 14,700 – 15,000 | |
| Vol. 2, # 19 (Oct. 1988) | 13,900 | Final issue |
In response to the horror bandwagon, Timely launched...Strange Tales #1, which would become the longest-running series to enter the Marvel Age.
{{cite book}}:|first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)While the finished version of this duo wouldn't debut for another few months, their prototypes took center stage in a short story in theStrange Tales anthology called 'Goodbye to Linda Brown'...This particular May and Ben lived by the sea and were the caretakers of their young wheelchair-bound niece named Linda Brown.
{{cite book}}:|first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Perhaps the most innovative new talent to emerge at Marvel during the late 1960s was Jim Steranko, whose bold innovations in graphics, layout, and design startled the readers...Steranko transformed the look of the comic book page.
Strange Tales #67 appeared and Steranko gave me another of those spine-tingling moments when I realized I was looking at the first 4-page spread in the history of comics.
His work on his first hit book,Nick Fury: Agent of SHIELD, took the wildly popular Bond secret-agent schtick and gave it a jazzy makeover, with outlandish plots, eye-popping visuals and even 'adult themes' that had the Comics Code Authority demanding several panels in one landmark issue be redrawn.
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