Friday, March 20, 2015

The Grooviest Covers of All Time: TV Guide Covers the Comicbook Heroes

Dig it, Groove-ophiles! During the Groovy Age, when any of our favorite super-heroes made it to the small screen--or even when the small screen made us some super-heroes--it was a big deal! An almost just as big deal was when any of those heroes made it to the cover of TV Guide magazine! So for something completely different, here's a look at how that legendary mag featured our super (and often sci-fi) comicbook heroes and heroines during the Groovy Age! Remember any of these?



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14 comments:

  1. ComicsfanMarch 20, 2015 at 5:35 AM

    I can't make out the signature on the cover--but I wonder if Bill Sienkiewicz did the art for the "Man From Atlantis" cover?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. FLAMEAPEMarch 20, 2015 at 8:18 AM

      The artist was Bob Peak, a major illustrator of the 50's-80's-

      http://www.tvguide.com/galleries/bob-peaks-tv-1068894/photo/f43203e0-7387-4e2c-9b8a-74f110e6f17f/

      Delete
    2. BillyWitchDoctorMarch 20, 2015 at 7:30 PM

      Bob Peak's son just had a kickstarter for his second book of Bob's illustrations. Bob Peak also created fantastic movie posters for The Spy Who Loved Me, several Star Trek movies, Excalibur, Apocalypse Now, and many, many, MANY more.

      bobpeak.com

      Delete
  2. Edo BosnarMarch 20, 2015 at 6:32 AM

    Haven't seen any of these before, because they were a) before my time and b) I grew up in a non-TV Guide buying household.
    A few of really quite nice: the ones featuring Star Trek, $6 Million Man and Man from Atlantis could have easily adorned the covers of the SF paperbacks of the day.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Britt ReidMarch 20, 2015 at 11:32 AM

    What?
    No Green Hornet cover?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Groovy AgentMarch 20, 2015 at 4:15 PM

      TV Guide really dropped the ball there, didn't they?

      Delete
    2. Britt ReidMarch 23, 2015 at 10:44 AM

      They did one...
      http://jul12.hugginsandscott.com/pl/47762_1966_superman_tv_guides.jpg
      ...it's just difficult to find on-line...

      Delete
  4. B SmithMarch 21, 2015 at 2:50 AM

    Does TV Guide still commission illustrations for covers these days, or is it all strictly photography?

    (And what was Mr/Ms Byrd using for reference for that Battlestar Galactica pic? Looks like the rear end of 2001's Discovery with some bits missing and added)

    ReplyDelete
  5. RussMarch 21, 2015 at 9:11 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  6. RussMarch 21, 2015 at 9:21 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  7. Joe JuskoMarch 21, 2015 at 6:09 PM

    I painted a Birds of Prey cover that was never used as the show got canceled while I was painting it! lol "Can't put a show on the cover that isn't on the air anymore", as my AD said. At least they paid me.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Joe JuskoMarch 21, 2015 at 6:15 PM

    TV Guide is not this TV Guide anymore. Now it's a slick magazine in the style of US and People. Really sucks. The illustrators trifecta in the 70's was TV Guide, TIME and Sports Illustrated, non of which use illustration anymore.

    ReplyDelete
  9. David MorefieldMarch 22, 2015 at 11:52 AM

    That Peak "Man From Atlantis" is fantastic! And I'd never seen the second Steve Austin cover, either. Long before the current era of superhero box office dominance, this was the closest we old-timers got to a "golden age" of heroes of film. Thanks for posting!

    ReplyDelete
  10. AnonymousMarch 22, 2015 at 9:10 PM

    LOL at the 2001 spaceship on the Battlestar Galactica cover!

    ReplyDelete

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Special thanks to Mike's Amazing World of Comics and Grand Comics Database for being such fantastic resources for covers, dates, creator info, etc. Thou art treasures true!


Note to "The Man": All images are presumed copyright by the respective copyright holders and are presented here as fair use under applicable laws, man! If you hold the copyright to a work I've posted and would like me to remove it, just drop me an e-mail and it's gone, baby, gone.


All other commentary and insanity copyright GroovyAge, Ltd.

As for the rest of ya, the purpose of this blog is to (re)introduce you to the great comics of the 1970s. If you like what you see, do what I do--go to a comics shop, bookstore, e-Bay or whatever and BUY YOUR OWN!