Model Heroes: The Amazing Spider-Man

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! First of all, Ol' Groove want's to say, "Happy Anniversary!" Yep, t'was eight years ago today that yers trooley posted our very first Diversion! It wasn't much, but it was a start, and who'da thunk eight years later we'd still be around, rappin' about the comics of the 70s, sharing memories, and just chillin' with our fellow Groove-ophiles? Thank you, one and all for your support, dedication, and love. Ol' Groove loves ya, baby! Let's keep truckin' on for as long as we can!

Today we're gonna look at another of the awesome Aurora Model Kits which originally hit stores in the late 60s, disappeared for a while, then made a comeback in the mid-70s with the super-cool twist of those hard to find (and expensive if you do find 'em) comicbook inserts. Not only do those inserts give us instructions for how to put those 'mazing models together (which I'm pretty sure were drawn by Dave Cockrum), but we get a piece of incredible background art (to set the finished model in front of, natch), but a whole stand-alone story, to boot! For the Amazing Spider-Man, author Len Wein (who'd go on to write the regular Amazing Spider-Man comic) and artist John Romita, Sr. (one of the Mt. Everest of Spidey creators) got it all together with a fun Spidey vs. Kraven the Hunter mini-classic! Check it out, baby!

The box and the unpainted model

A nicely painted finished version of the model--but what's up with Kraven's pants?

Model Heroes: The Incredible Hulk

Has it really been nearly a year since we gabbed about those cool Aurora Comic Scene model kits from the mid-1970s? Well, it's about time Ol' Groove shared this little piece of comicbook history with ya! Here's the Incredible Hulk Comic Scene--er--comic from 1974 by Lively Len Wein and Happy Herb Trimpe! (Dunno who wrote the copy for the instructions, but the art looks a whole like Delightful Dave Cockrum's doesn't it?)


With some skill and lots of patience, your Comics Scene should'a looked like this:





















Incredible, ain't it? Pax!

Model Monsters: the 1971 Aurora Vampirella (and Friends) Monster Scenes Kit

Hehheh, welcome, Groovesters! Hehheh, come een, pleease, and joeen me, won't you? Hehheh...follow mee eento the Torture Chamber as wee conteenue...







A few weeks ago, Ol' Groove waxed eloquent on the Aurora Superhero Model Kits of 1974, and at the end of the post I warn--er--promised ya that I'd fill ya in on the Vampirella torture scene Aurora unleashed on us back in 1971. Well, you know the Groovester always keeps his threat--er--promises. Come a little closer and learn, Grasshopper...

Vampirella had been created by Forrest Ackerman and James Warren for Warren Magazine's Vampirella #1, back in the summer of 1969. Needless to say, Vampi became a cult hit, spawning posters, puzzles, paperback novels, and even a movie (in 1996). Needless to say, it came as no surprise to Ackerman, Warren, or anyone else that Vampi merchandise began catching fandom's attention. You don't put a chick like that (vampiress or not) in an outfit like that and not expect to get lots of attention, dig? Anyway, the folks at Aurora produced a Vampirella model kit, and even worked up (the first ever) model character crossover by producing a mad scientist (Dr. Deadly), a helpless victim, and even a la-BOR-atory and torture cage. They'd already been producing a Frankenstein's Monster model (as part of their Universal series in the late 60s), so he became part of the crossover, as well. Aurora called the new line Monster Scenes. They hoped the crossover with Vampi would resuscitate the flagging Monster model line. Here's what happened...

Aurora produced two (that I know of) ads featuring the new Monster Scenes kits. A tame one (found on many a comicbook back cover during the summer of 71) and the comicbook style ad that caught everyone's attention (found inside many a comicbook during that self-same summer). Click 'em if you dare...



How that second ad got past the comics code, I'll never know. I dunno if many parents saw those ads, but when they caught sight of the actual boxes and models...



...Outrage might be the best word to describe their reactions. (Remember, those Hammer horror flicks were still getting "X" ratings back then!) All kinds of groups (including very powerful and influential groups like Parents for Responsibility in the Toy Industry and National Organization for Women) began leaning on Aurora (and their parent company, Nabisco [!]) to force them to discontinue making the Monster Kits. Not only that, but Warren Magazines were uptight about their heroine, Vampi, being portrayed as a villainess. Was that the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back? The powers-that-were at Aurora quickly caved under all that pressure. Production of the kits stopped in May, with the last of the unsold kits being pulled from the shelves in November. But they'd made it through Halloween, baby!

Finally, for the curious among ya, here's a look at the completed scene (you can click it to enlarge it if you promise not to have nightmares...):

Seems kinda tame by today's standards, dunnit?

That's it for this time, Groovesters. Lemme leave ya with a Groovy Age Halloween riddle. How is a vampire like a lollipop? Neither sucker ever gets an even break. (Ya have'ta highlight the corny answer, Igor!)

Model Heroes: 1974 Aurora Comic Scenes

In 1974, Aurora, that grooviest of groovy toy makers, reissued many of their superhero models from the 60s, and even added a few more to their line-up. Calling them "Aurora Comic Scenes", each model came with its own 8 page comic. One page was a full page background scene that you could stand up behind your completed model to create a "3-D diorama". Heavy duty!

Young Groove got his share of these beauties, you betcha! I started with Superboy, added the Hulk and Robin, then nabbed Batman and Spider-Man. I tried for years to track down Captain America, but had no luck. They came in really cool boxes that were created to yank allowance money right out of a young comic-fiend's pocket. Check out a few:




Here's what your average superhero looked like when you opened the box:


Yep, that's Superman, all over. Kinda gross if you think about it (unless you're Lex Luthor, then you're diggin' it the most).

The ones I had weren't terribly hard to put together except for Batman, whose cape was so heavy it kept pulling his head off his shoulders. Painting them right was the real chore. Each model came in one solid color (like the Superman example above) so you had to paint in all the other colors if you didn't want a monochrome superhero. They were fun, though! Michael Miller, who runs the Molehill Group website has some excellent examples of completed kits on his site. Place your pupils on these:



Far-out, huh?

The comics that came with the kits were pretty awesome, too. Each were written by either Len Wein or Marv Wolfman with art by Dick Giordano, John Romita, Curt Swan, Dave Cockrum, and Herb Trimpe. Dig these crazy Comic Scenes Covers:


Remind me later to give you the lowdown on the Vampirella Torture Chamber model kits. Now that was some funky, freaked-out stuff!

Catch ya on the rebound!