What Were We Reading When Humans First Walked on the Moon?

(First, and foremost, today is my 23rd wedding anniversary. She remains the love of my life. Well, she knows she shares me with comics. Happy Anniversary, my love.)

To paraphrase The Beatles, it was 50 years ago today. Neil Armstrong’s momentous step down the ladder ushered in what was hoped to be a new era of human exploration of space. Suffice to say, that didn’t happen, we’re still planet-bound, although NASA is saying we’ll be back there some time in the near future. Unfortunately, I’ll believe it when I see it.

For me, one of the best ways to put myself into another era is through comic books. I’ve a relatively deep knowledge of them, and looking at trends and events from various historical periods tells one a lot about the industry and the readers at the time. So in celebration of the 50^th anniversary of this incredible human achievement, I think we should have a look at what was going on in comics at the same time.

The first thing to bear in mind is that the cover dates on old comics were not actually the dates of publication. More often than not, these were the dates upon which the comic should be removed from shelves, freeing up space for incoming product. Before 1973, cover dates were about 2 months in advance of publication dates. What this means is that comics published in July of 1969 likely bore a September 1969 date. To be safe, I’ve had a look at comics published between August and October of that year, but I’ll focus on September.

Honestly, the biggest thing, I think, is the first appearance of Sam Wilson, the Falcon and eventual-Captain America, in Captain America #117, cover dated September. Sam has become a fixture in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but we should never forget that he was so important to the Captain America title that “and the Falcon” was added to the comic’s title between issues 134 and 222. Although there are some problems with early depictions of Sam, specifically some stereotyping that reads quite uncomfortably in contemporary times, he represents something very important as far as African-American representation in superhero comics. Note that, unlike many African-American superheroes, he did not have the word “black” in front of his superhero name, unlike Black Panther, Black Goliath, Black Racer, etc. Instead, he is just “The Falcon,” and he becomes Captain America’s best friend. Bearing in mind when this happened, just 1 year after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., Sam really is a major step forward for representation at a time when the conversation around diversity and representation was virtually non-existent. 

There were some other notable first appearances by characters as humans took their first steps on an extraterrestrial body. Along with The Falcon, September-dated comics saw the first appearances of Sauron (Uncanny X-Men #60), Titanium Man (Tales of Suspense #69), and Digger, a host character a la the Crypt Keeper (Tower of Shadows #1).

In Justice League of America #73, cover-dated August so likely on stands June – July, fans were introduced to the Superman of Earth-2 for the first time, reasserting that the Golden Age happened on a parallel world introduced 8 years earlier in the pages of The Flash. The story continued over into the September issue. The Earth-2 Superman, of course, comes to play a pivotal role in many major DC events up to the present day.

Marvel’s horror/fantasy title Tower of Shadows debuted with a September cover date, featuring work from luminaries such as Neal Adams, Jim Steranko, and Bernie Wrightson. The title lasted 6 years, shifting to Creatures on the Loose as of the 9^th issue, and, later in the run, featured John Jameson, a one-time astronaut, in his new guise as “Man-Wolf.” Other comics released this month include the second issue of the underground magazine Bijou Funnies (though whether or not undergrounds used the same dating system as mainstream comics is unknown), Marvel’s My Love #1, featuring art by John Romita, Sr. and John Buscema, and, famously, the first issue of Warren Publishing’s Vampirella. Thor #168 pitted the God of Thunder against the World-Eater himself, Galactus. The Brave and the Bold #85 saw an update of Green Arrow’s costume, thanks to artist Neal Adams. This marks the first depiction of Oliver Queen with his trademark beard and his Silver Age costume.

Along with the Falcon, Vampi and Green Arrow are characters who have weathered the last half century quite well, only rarely, if at all, being out of print in the past 5 decades.

While perhaps not a huge year for comics, there were definitely some memorable titles and characters to have come from this momentous month. As Armstrong and company gamboled about in the lunar dust, Sam Wilson took his first flight in Marvel Comics, Vampirella terrorized and titillated horror fans, and Green Arrow left behind his Golden Age self. One wonders, 50 years from now, what moments and characters from this year will resonate when we celebrate the 100-year anniversary of our first steps on another world.

Other Things You Might Like Reading:

Captain America of Earth-H!: The Earth-H Files - Captain America and "The Red Skull"

The 60s - When Veronica Met the Devil: Giant Box of Comics Breaks the Law! - Veronica in "The Devil You Say?"