More of the Marvel/Monkees Comics Connection! X-Men?! NOT BRAND ECHH!

I've already established the DC Comics connection to the madcap Monkees here, but didja know the maniacal mavens at Marvel Comics moved to the Monkees manic musical groove? True! Click below to see these late-60s examples of the Monkees being cited in such titles as uncanny X-MEN, and the nonsensical NOT BRAND ECHH!

Above: A look inside 1967's X-MEN #31 reveals the merry mutants enjoying some
downtime at a nearby club called "the Monkees Paw!" By Roy Thomas and Werner Roth!

From 1967's NOT BRAND ECHH #4, the X-Men get the parody treatment, all
while listening to THE MONKEES THEME, played on a convenient portable radio!
By Roy Thomas and Tom Sutton!

This 1967 issue of NOT BRAND ECHH #2 once again "apes" the MONKEES THEME,
to hilarious effect! By Gary Friedrich and Marie Severin!

BONUS! Click here to see another Monkees appearance in the pages of the nutty NOT BRAND ECHH! comical book!

Batman! Robin! Superman! Rare 1974 Chemtoy Custom Painted Figures! DC Comics!

Most fans of a certain age recall these wonderfully cheap plastic figures of DC Comics' "Big Three" superheroes. These little (about 5 inches) replicas of Superman, Clark Kent, Batman, and Robin, were all sold loose in end-cap and counter display boxes in stores like Woolworth's in 1974. They were later hawked on blister cards thru Kresge and K-Mart outlets, and were very well-known back in the day! Tho not much to look at in their original state (due to very minimal paint applications), these minuscule masterpieces look quite nice, once a bit of "TLC" is applied! Click below to view images of both the original Bronze Age figures, and the same figures after I've applied paint, marker and lots of time! 

Above: The original Batman and Robin figures, as sold in 1974!

Above: The later-issued carded figures. As crude as they looked then (and
especially now) collectors still clamor for these simple, but colorful, toys!

Above: The original three Superman plastic figures.

Above: Superman on the "blister card!"

Above: The point-of-purchase store box that
housed the three Superman figures!

Above: The 1974 Batman and Robin figures with custom paint!
Marker, and gloss and dull coatings, were also applied!

Above: The '74 Superman (and Clark Kent) figures, with spiffy new custom paint applications!

BONUS! Click below to see the comic-art inspirations for the above figure poses, courtesy of artists Carmine Infantino and Curt Swan!