Post by Admin on Jul 27, 2018 12:42:32 GMT
www.cbr.com/captain-marvel-shazam-film-serial-scorpion/
How the First Shazam Movie Continued the Plot Into the Comics!
In “Follow the Path,” I spotlight changes made to comic book characters that are based on outside media, as well as characters who entirely came from outside media. I’m sure you can think of other examples, so feel free to e-mail me at brianc@cbr.com if you want to suggest some other examples for future installments.
Today, we look at how Fawcett made it a big point to work together with the release of the first Captain Marvel film to transition the story of the film into the comic books, as well!
As I recently discussed in a Movie Legends Revealed, Republic Pictures originally wanted to do a Superman movie as their first superhero film serial. However, there was some legal issues there and so the script that they had written for their Superman picture instead became a fill-in superhero known as Copperhead, who fought against Doctor Satan. With Superman off the table, in late 1940 Republic Pictures turned their attention to Captain Marvel, who had debuted less than a year earlier at this point in time.
They put together the film serial known as The Adventures of Captain Marvel, which was released weekly from March 28, 1941 until, I dunno, 12 weeks after March 28th. What’s that? End of June, I guess, right?
The plot of the film involves an archaeological expedition led by John Malcolm into the Valley of Tombs in Siam…
While on the expedition, they discover the Golden Scorpion, which is powered by a series of powerful lenses. During this time, the Golden Scorpion accidentally destroys the entrance to one of the tombs. During this time, the young radio broadcaster, Billy Batson, who had been along on the expedition to, well, you know, cover it for the radio, meets the wizard Shazam, who chooses him to turn into Captain Marvel when he says the magic word, “Shazam!”
The main purpose of Billy turning into Captain Marvel is to stop the evil Scorpion…
Billy’s best friends are Whitey…
and Betty Wallace…
The members of the expedition divvied up the lenses, but one by one they are murdered by the Scorpion as he tries to collect them all so that he can turn the Golden Scorpion into, in effect, a powerful death ray.
This being a film serial in the early 1940s, most of the film involves Billy and his normal friends, as Captain Marvel barely gets involved. Only when absolutely necessary and then only super briefly. Tom Tyler is awesome as Captain Marvel.
Anyways, the serial came out and it was a huge success. This was early in the history of comic books, and while we had already seen the Superman comic books adapt to the stuff that was introduced in the Superman radio series, we had not guidelines in place for how a comic book series would tie in with a movie like this. Luckily, Fawcett was on top of the ball and they tried a number of interesting ways to continue the story from the film into the comic books, as well.
Read on to see what Fawcett did with the film!
Probably no other comic book publisher of the era did quite as much innovative work as Fawcett when it came to finding out new ways to deliver comic books to readers. Fawcett was not content to just have Captain Marvel and his fellow superheroes appear in comic books. No sir, they came up with a storybook idea where Captain Marvel stories would appear in a storybook format.
Also, in their biggest tie-in to the movie, they did an actual SEQUEL to the movie in the pages of a “Big Little Book”…
The book was written by a man named Otto Binder. Binder would soon go on to become one of the most acclaimed comic book writers of this generation and he was a particularly notable writer for Captain Marvel, being the main writer on the character throughout the rest of the decade. He wrote over HALF of all of Facwett’s Captain Marvel related material all said and done. And they had a LOT of Captain Marvel-related material!
The Return of the Scorpion, however, was just a one-off story. It really did not have a lasting impact on Captain Marvel.
The OTHER characters, however, definitely did.
In 1941’s Whiz Comics #22 (by C.C. Beck and Pete Costanza), Whitey comes to Billy for help as Malcolm has gone missing while on another expedition…
Whitey would become a recurring character in the comic book during the early 1940s and popped up a few more times when Captain Marvel came back at DC Comics in the 1970s.
It’s fascinating to see how comic books tied into film back in the day! This stuff has been going on for almost a century!
How the First Shazam Movie Continued the Plot Into the Comics!
In “Follow the Path,” I spotlight changes made to comic book characters that are based on outside media, as well as characters who entirely came from outside media. I’m sure you can think of other examples, so feel free to e-mail me at brianc@cbr.com if you want to suggest some other examples for future installments.
Today, we look at how Fawcett made it a big point to work together with the release of the first Captain Marvel film to transition the story of the film into the comic books, as well!
As I recently discussed in a Movie Legends Revealed, Republic Pictures originally wanted to do a Superman movie as their first superhero film serial. However, there was some legal issues there and so the script that they had written for their Superman picture instead became a fill-in superhero known as Copperhead, who fought against Doctor Satan. With Superman off the table, in late 1940 Republic Pictures turned their attention to Captain Marvel, who had debuted less than a year earlier at this point in time.
They put together the film serial known as The Adventures of Captain Marvel, which was released weekly from March 28, 1941 until, I dunno, 12 weeks after March 28th. What’s that? End of June, I guess, right?
The plot of the film involves an archaeological expedition led by John Malcolm into the Valley of Tombs in Siam…
While on the expedition, they discover the Golden Scorpion, which is powered by a series of powerful lenses. During this time, the Golden Scorpion accidentally destroys the entrance to one of the tombs. During this time, the young radio broadcaster, Billy Batson, who had been along on the expedition to, well, you know, cover it for the radio, meets the wizard Shazam, who chooses him to turn into Captain Marvel when he says the magic word, “Shazam!”
The main purpose of Billy turning into Captain Marvel is to stop the evil Scorpion…
Billy’s best friends are Whitey…
and Betty Wallace…
The members of the expedition divvied up the lenses, but one by one they are murdered by the Scorpion as he tries to collect them all so that he can turn the Golden Scorpion into, in effect, a powerful death ray.
This being a film serial in the early 1940s, most of the film involves Billy and his normal friends, as Captain Marvel barely gets involved. Only when absolutely necessary and then only super briefly. Tom Tyler is awesome as Captain Marvel.
Anyways, the serial came out and it was a huge success. This was early in the history of comic books, and while we had already seen the Superman comic books adapt to the stuff that was introduced in the Superman radio series, we had not guidelines in place for how a comic book series would tie in with a movie like this. Luckily, Fawcett was on top of the ball and they tried a number of interesting ways to continue the story from the film into the comic books, as well.
Read on to see what Fawcett did with the film!
Probably no other comic book publisher of the era did quite as much innovative work as Fawcett when it came to finding out new ways to deliver comic books to readers. Fawcett was not content to just have Captain Marvel and his fellow superheroes appear in comic books. No sir, they came up with a storybook idea where Captain Marvel stories would appear in a storybook format.
Also, in their biggest tie-in to the movie, they did an actual SEQUEL to the movie in the pages of a “Big Little Book”…
The book was written by a man named Otto Binder. Binder would soon go on to become one of the most acclaimed comic book writers of this generation and he was a particularly notable writer for Captain Marvel, being the main writer on the character throughout the rest of the decade. He wrote over HALF of all of Facwett’s Captain Marvel related material all said and done. And they had a LOT of Captain Marvel-related material!
The Return of the Scorpion, however, was just a one-off story. It really did not have a lasting impact on Captain Marvel.
The OTHER characters, however, definitely did.
In 1941’s Whiz Comics #22 (by C.C. Beck and Pete Costanza), Whitey comes to Billy for help as Malcolm has gone missing while on another expedition…
Whitey would become a recurring character in the comic book during the early 1940s and popped up a few more times when Captain Marvel came back at DC Comics in the 1970s.
It’s fascinating to see how comic books tied into film back in the day! This stuff has been going on for almost a century!