Scott and Dan hit up the comics racks from 72 years ago…
This week for RETRO HOT PICKS, Scott and I are selecting comics that came out the week of July 15, 1954.
Last time for RETRO HOT PICKS, it was the week of July 8, 1968. Click here to check it out.
(Keep in mind that comics came out on multiple days, so these are the issues that went on sale between July 12 and July 18.)
So, let’s set the scene: There was Memphis and there was the rest of the world. Listeners of WHBQ, a local radio station, could not get enough of a new song by a local truck driver, backed by a couple of musicians named Scotty Moore and Bill Black.
The song, That’s All Right, an uptempo cover of a 1946 tune by blues singer Arthur Crudup, had been recorded at the city’s Sun Studio on July 5, and two days later, was first played on the air by deejay Dewey Phillips (no relation to Sun’s owner, Sam Phillips).
The impact was immediate, at least around town: Dewey played the song over and over as the station’s phones rang off the hook. The jockey was able to track down the 19-year-old singer and get him into his studio that night for an impromptu interview.
That’s All Right (with a flip side of Blue Moon of Kentucky) would be released by Sun Records on July 19, and while his overall magnitude was small and limited, Elvis Presley’s star was born. And, to many historians, so was rock and roll.
July 1954
The country was becoming increasingly fascinated by a murder in suburban Cleveland. In the early morning hours of July 4, Marilyn Sheppard was bludgeoned to death in her bed. Amid a growing media frenzy, suspicion quickly centered on her husband, Dr. Sam Sheppard, who said his wife was killed by an intruder who, despite his best efforts, got away.
The case — which would see Sheppard convicted, then cleared 12 years later — was one of the most infamous of the 20th century and gave rise to the belief that it inspired the TV show The Fugitive. (The show’s creator would deny it.)
IN OTHER NEWS
— On July 12, the Eisenhower adminstration proposed spending $50 billion for an interstate highway program that ultimately would radically alter the landscape of the United States. The plan was outlined broadly by Vice President Richard Nixon at a governors’ conference in upstate New York.
— Frida Kahlo, posthumously recognized as one of the most important artists of the 20th century, was found dead July 13 at her Mexico City home by her nurse. Her death was ruled a pulmonary embolism, but it’s quite possible she took her own life by overdosing on pills. Kahlo had long endured declining health and was suffering from a high fever and severe pain in her final hours.
— On the same day, American sportswriter and poet Grantland Rice died at the age of 73. One of the best sportswriters who ever lived, Rice coined the phrase that it didn’t matter whether you “won or lost — but how you played the game.”
1954 Topps cards
— This year’s baseball All-Star Game was July 13 in Cleveland. The American League won, 11-9. Starters for both teams included Jackie Robinson, Mickey Mantle, Roy Campanella, Duke Snider, Stan Musial, Yogi Berra, Al Rosen and Whitey Ford. The day before, the Major League Baseball Players Association — a union destined to become a powerful force in American sports — was founded.
— Seven years after Robinson broke the color barrier, he and the Brooklyn Dodgers on July 17 became the first major-league team to field a starting lineup with a majority of Black players. Joining Robinson were Campanella, Don Newcombe, Jim Gilliam and Sandy Amoros.
— Construction of Disneyland began July 16 in Anaheim, California.
The most popular movie in America was The Caine Mutiny, starring Humphrey Bogart as the paranoid martinet Captain Queeg, Jose Ferrer, Van Johnson, and Fred MacMurray. Other major films included Alfred Hitchcock’s Dial M for Murder; Three Coins in the Fountain; and Demetrius and the Gladiators, a sequel to The Robe.
Premiering on July 15 in Houston was Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, which featured Julie Newmar in a minor role. (She also had a walk-on in Demetrius and the Gladiators.)
A Dragnet rerun led the Nielsens. Other popular shows of the time included I Love Lucy, the biggest show on TV; The Buick-Berle Show; and Toast of the Town, hosted by Ed Sullivan. Howdy Doody was huge with the kids.
Jack Benny, Amos ‘n’ Andy, and The Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy Show were radio-show hits, though TV had become the dominant source of free entertainment at home.
Little Things Mean a Lot by Kitty Kallen with Orchestra directed by Jack Pleis, was far and away the top music hit. Also popular was Sh-Boom, by the Crew-Cuts with David Carroll and His Orchestra. Glenn Miller Plays Selections from The Glenn Miller Story was the best-selling album.
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Dan Greenfield, editor, 13th Dimension
John Wayne Adventure Comics #28, Toby. Not that I’m surprised, but John Wayne lasted a reasonably impressive 31 issues, from 1949 to 1955. That’s right, pilgrim.
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The Lone Ranger’s Companion Tonto #16, Dell. Damn, man. Do not fuck with Tonto. He will end you.
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This Magazine Is Haunted #20, Charlton. Yeah, and now so are my nightmares, Sy Moskowitz!
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Real Love #64, Ace. Y’know what is really sexy? When your hair gets stuck in your boyfriend’s nose.
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Archie #70, Archie. Archie Andrews, always punching above his weight class.
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Marge’s Little Lulu #74, Dell. My Mom loved Little Lulu. I’ve said that before. I’m just saying it again.
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Scott Tipton, contributor-at-large, 13th Dimension
Batman #86, DC. Batman and Robin fill in for their Native American counterparts, Chief Man-of-the-Bats and Little Raven.
Dan adds: If you want to read a great modern story with these guys, check out Grant Morrison and Chris Burnham’s Batman Incorporated #7, from 2011. Hell, just go read all of Batman Incorporated. Both Morrison series.
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World’s Finest Comics #72, DC. Time to pay a visit to Fort Crime!
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Frankenstein #33, Prize. What time is it? Death O’ Clock, of course.
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MORE
— RETRO HOT PICKS! On Sale the Week of June 24 — in 1968! Click here.
— RETRO HOT PICKS! On Sale the Week of July 1 — in 1976! Click here.
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Comics sources: Mike’s Amazing World of Comics and the Grand Comics Database.
