L. Miller and son

From the late 1940s until around 1966 L. Miller and son published a variety of comics in the UK. Many of them were black and white reprints of Fawcett titles from the USA. The most well remembered today are their reprints of Captain Marvel comics. Throughout the 1950s there were many others like Flash Gordon and Robin Hood.

                                                             

Once National/DC had forced Fawcett to cease publishing the big red cheese, Len Miller and artist Mick Anglo decided to continue with a UK version of the superhero.With a few subtle changes of costume and identity, and a cry of “Kimota!” instead of “Shazam!” Marvelman was born. 

Marvelman and the Marvelman family continued in new adventures until 1963. L. Miller and son comics folded in 1966 and their assets were aquired by Alan Class. Here is my copy of Mystic 30. Published in 1963 it seems to contain pre-code horror stories originally found in Fawcett’s “This magazine is Haunted” from the early 1950s. Although the cover seems to be a UK sourced, toned-down drawing, the interior contains some gruesome fare. Whilst in the States “Horror” comics in the early 1960s had been reduced to the likes of House of Mystery and Tales to Astonish, comic buyers in the UK were still being exposed to pre comics code material.

But of course in a few years time there would be Warren’s Creepy and Eerie on the spinner racks.