RETRO HOT PICKS! On Sale This Week — in 1978!

Scott and Dan hit up the comics racks from 47 years ago…

This week for RETRO HOT PICKS, Scott Tipton and I are selecting comics that came out the week of Jan. 22, 1978.

Last time for RETRO HOT PICKS, it was the week of Jan. 15, 1955. Click here to check it out.

(Keep in mind that comics came out on multiple days, so these are technically the comics that went on sale between Jan. 19 and Jan. 25.)

So, let’s set the scene: The Great Blizzard of 1978 smashed through the Rust Belt, hitting Jan. 25 and roaring for several days. It was the worst in Ohio history, killing 51 and from Jan. 26-27, the entire Ohio Turnpike was shut down for the first time ever. The impact on transportation was described by a National Guard leader as similar to a nuclear attack.

Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and part of Wisconsin were especially hard hit, as well, not to mention southwestern Ontario in Canada. Winds gusts hit up to 111 miles per hour, causing drifts that buried some homes and wind chills reached as low as -60 degrees Fahrenheit. A total of 90 people were killed.

Hartford Civic Center

It had been a particularly tough winter in the North even up to that point. A week before the blizzard, for example, the roof of the Hartford Civic Center in the early morning of Jan. 18 collapsed under the weight of heavy snow, hours after the University of Connecticut men’s basketball team hosted an NCAA matchup that drew more than 4,000 fans. Nobody was hurt.

The bad weather continued: In a couple of weeks, the Northeast would be slammed by a blizzard similar to the Midwest disaster.

Now, the whole point of this column is to illustrate the most interesting comics that fans could buy in a particular week and, given the horrendous conditions, thousands of issues never made it to stores and the industry took a hit that wouldn’t become apparent for months. The storms and other factors like inflation led to what became known as the DC Implosion — the company’s massive slashing of staff and titles — in June 1978.

IN OTHER NEWS

— Manhunt! Authorities were after fugitive serial killer Ted Bundy. He would be caught in February in Florida but last week, on Jan. 15, he committed his horrid rampage at Florida State University’s Chi Omega sorority house in Tallahassee, where he attacked four women, killing two. He also broke into a basement apartment eight blocks away and assaulted a fifth woman. He wasn’t immediately listed as a suspect.

— On Jan. 19, President Carter gave his first State of the Union speech. It was derided as uninspired.

— On Jan. 25, Democrat Muriel Humphrey was appointed to fill her husband’s U.S. Senate seat. Hubert H. Humphrey, who served as vice president under Lyndon Johnson, died earlier in January.

Close Encounters of the Third Kind was the top movie at the box office, but everyone had Night Fever — Saturday Night Fever, to be precise. The John Travolta Disco flick was a bona fide cultural phenomenon, and the Bee Gees’ soundtrack — which featured other artists, as well — hit No. 1 on the Billboard albums chart, where it would remain for almost the next six months.

There was also Michael Crichton’s Coma, starring Genevieve Bujold and Michael Douglas, and the Mel Brooks classic High Anxiety, which rivals Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein for sheer laughs and quotable lines.

Laverne & Shirley and Happy Days were a killer ratings team for ABC, while other hits included Little House on the Prairie, Three’s Company, 60 Minutes, Charlie’s Angels and The Love Boat, which was in its first season. (Guest stars on the Pacific Princess this week included Desi Arnaz Jr., Adrienne Barbeau, Harold Gould, Fernando Lamas, Michele Lee, Juliet Mills, Dan Rowan, John Schuck, Larry Storch, Karen Valentine and Stephanie Zimbalist.)

Meanwhile, the man credited with turning ABC into a ratings powerhouse, exec Fred Silverman, resigned Jan. 19 so he could take on the project of lifting NBC out of last among the three networks.

Baby Come Back, by Player led the singles chart, followed by Randy Newman’s Short People, which was actually controversial because idiots did not realize that it was a satire. Various Gibbs, meanwhile, dominated the rest of the leaders: the Bee Gees’ epoch-defining Stayin’ Alive was at No. 3 and their How Deep Is Your Love was No. 7. Andy Gibb’s (Love Is) Thicker Than Water was at No. 10.

Besides the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack, the best-selling albums included Foot Loose + Fancy Free, by Rod Stewart (No. 2); All ‘n’ All, by Earth, Wind & Fire (No. 3); Out of the Blue by ELO (No. 4); and News of the World by Queen.

Oh, and the Sex Pistols had just broken up Jan. 17.

Dan Greenfield, editor, 13th Dimension

Batman Family #17, DC. This week actually overlaps a bit with a week we’ve done before, so I’ll throw out there what I wrote last time about this issue: Batman Family’s Dollar Comics era starts off with a bang, with Batman himself now joining the festivities. The main events are interconnected stories featuring the Darknight Detective teamed with Robin (by Gerry Conway and Jim Aparo) while Batgirl, Batwoman and the Huntress join forces (by Bob Rozakis and penciller Don Heck). It’s also the first meeting between Earth-One Batman and Earth-Two Huntress and there are appearances by Poison Ivy and both Earth-One and Earth-Two Catwoman. All for a buck! Plus: Michael Golden on a Man-Bat/Demon team-up written by Rozakis.

Here’s what I’ll add this time: Private eye Man-Bat is the best Man-Bat.

Scott adds: That Man-Bat glamour shot with the star behind it is hilarious.

Machine Man #1, Marvel. I just dig that this is a spinoff of Jack Kirby’s 2001: A Space Odyssey comic and that it takes place in the regular Marvel Universe.

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What If? #8, Marvel. I actually don’t think it would matter if the world knew Daredevil was blind. He’d still have all his powers and skills. Of course, perhaps the Owl could talk him to death.

Creepy #96, Warren. Gee, I wonder why they went with this cover.

Scott Tipton, contributor-at-large, 13th Dimension

Marvel Team-Up #68, Marvel. You gotta think if Spidey makes a trip to Florida and doesn’t run into Man-Thing, he’s gonna be a little disappointed.

The Spectacular Spider-Man #17, Marvel. A great two-parter wrapping up the aftermath of the dissolution of the Champions.

Secret Society of Super-Villains #14, DC. I always wondered about the editorial meetings behind this series:

“Now, if we have supervillains starring in this book, they’re gonna need a superhero whose ass they can whoop constantly. Who do we have that no one cares about?”

“Captain Comet it is!”

Dan adds: I didn’t realize the Crime Syndicate showed up in this series. I’ll have to get myself a copy. Love those scumbags!

MORE

— RETRO HOT PICKS! On Sale The Week of Jan. 15 — in 1955! Click here.

— RETRO HOT PICKS! On Sale The Week of Jan. 8 — in 1990! Click here.

Primary comics sources: Mike’s Amazing World of Comics, the Grand Comics Database.

Author: Dan Greenfield

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10 Comments

  1. I just wasn’t reading comics in ’78…I quit in ’75 & didn’t get back into reading comics again till ’84…then DC had to do Crisis that I didn’t like all the changes of history & deaths of characters…I quit reading mainstream comics & was just reading Indy comics that I still read to this day…I love Dynamite Comics

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  2. Love those last few issues of SSOSV, I was gutted the story on Earth 2 was not tied up

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  3. I bought my first car, a brand spankin’ new 1978 Firebird, in early February so comics were the furthest thing from my mind.

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  4. Batman Family #17, for me, was one of the best of the era!

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  5. Love Kiby’s 70s work!

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  6. I remember that blizzard! It hit Kansas too! I had to go in to school, my Mom was the Librarian! Probably the only time I enjoyed High School! I liked “Secret Society of Super Villains” better than High School and I thought Capt. Comet fit into the story very well. (Hmmm…Man-Bat’s face almost looks like a yearbook picture; “Don’ttakeitnowdon’ttakeitnowdon’ttakeitnow…aw, bats!”)

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  7. The blizzard was largely responsible for the DC Implosion months later. Warner executives panicked and saw plunging sales (largely due to the blizzard) and ordered DC to slash its number of titles! Classic misreading of data and overreaction.

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    • For those that haven’t read it yet, the telling of “The DC Implosion” by TwoMorrows Publishing goes even deeper than the snow. (Sorry. Pun unavoidable.) I highly recommend it.

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  8. I remember getting $5 an hour to shovel snow off the roof of the local mall. Bring your own shovel, climb that huge ladder in the building up to the roof, don’t all stand together!

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