Promotional Comics: Blue Bird |
Created by and © Ramon Schenk 2006. Additional data provided by Mike Ambrose and others. |
Introduction
These are almost exact reprints of the originals. The cover art has been cropped to accommodate the top bar where the store name is placed and the lower bar where the typical Blue Bird bullets are placed.
The following stores are known to have participated: R&S Shoe Store, Blue Bird Shoes, Big Shoe Store, GallenKamp's and Schiff's Shoes.
Atomic Mouse #14 - 12c - 1962
Black Fury #1 - 10c - 1959
Black Fury #3 - 10c - 1959
Black Fury #4 - 10c - 1959
Black Fury #5 - 10c - 1959 (also Wild Bill Hickok & Jingles)
Black Fury #9 - 10c - 1959
Black Fury #10 - 10c - 1961
Freddy #8 - 10c - 1960
Freddy #10 - 10c - 1961 (also My Little Margie)
Freddy #13 - 10c - 1961
Freddy #14 - 12c - 1962
Li'l Genius #7 -10c - 1960 (also Goofy Rabbit, Timmy the Timid Ghost)
Li'l Genius #8 - 10c - 1960 (also Atomic Bunny)
Masked Raider #1 - 10c - 1959
Masked Raider #3 - 10c - 1959
Masked Raider #4 -10c - 1959
Masked Raider #5 - 10c - 1960?
Masked Raider #6 - 10c - 1960 (also Rocky Lane)
Masked Raider #7 - 10c - 1960 (also Rocky Lane)
Masked Raider #8 - 10c - 1960 (also Tex Ritter)
Masked Raider #10 - 10c - 1961 (also Wild Bill Hickok)
Mysteries of Unexplored Worlds #18 - 12c - ???
Six-Gun Heroes #6 - 10c - 1960 (Wyatt Earp, Wild Bill Hickok, Rocky Lane, Annie
Oakley, Lash LaRue)
Six-Gun Heroes #7 - 10c - 1960?
Six-Gun Heroes #8 - 10c - 1960 (Wyatt Earp, Lash LaRue, Wild Bill Hickok, Annie
Oakley)
Six-Gun Heroes #9 - 10c -
Six-Gun Heroes #10 - 10c - 1961
Six-Gun Heroes #16 - 12c? - 1962
Teenage Hotrodders #18 - 12c - 1964
Texas Rangers #16 - 12c - 1962
Timmy the Timid Ghost #1? - 10c - ???
Timmy the Timid Ghost #7 -10c - 1960
Timmy the Timid Ghost #8 - 10c - 1960
Timmy the Timid Ghost #9 - 10c - 1960
Wild Bill Hickok #2 - 10c - 1959
Wild Bill Hickok #5 - 10c - 1959
Wyatt Earp #13 -10c - 1961
Wyatt Earp #14 - 12c - 1962
I have not used Overstreet's listing, because they come across as very vague and open to interpretation.
No doubt there were many more than this handful. But apparently none of the other genres Charlton excelled in (romance, war) were used, just humor, western and the odd hot rod.
The theory
My prolimenary hypothesis is that Charlton published two groups of giveaway comics for Blue Bird, which sold its shoes in stores with various names. One group was brought out in 1959-1961, the other some years later, around 1964. The comics were sold over the counter or given to kids by the shop assistants, much to the appreciation of parents, who would be guaranteed their half hour of undisturbed shopping.