LARRY LARKIN Column

Being sick as a youngster had one good benefit. I knew my parents would usually purchase a couple of comic books for me to help the recovery time.

Going to the store myself and checking out the newest editions on the racks was a major event. The colorful covers usually offered a hint of the 50-some pages of joyful reading material inside.

Readers could fly with Superman, laugh at the antics of Archie and all his pals, or help Roy Rogers or Gene Autry catch a lowdown crook.

Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck were just a couple of the many Disney characters that had their own series of comics.

Then there were the likes of Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Little Iodine, Nancy (and boyfriend Sluggo), Little Lulu, and Richie Rich.

In a carryover from the newspaper comic strips, you followed the adventures of Dick Tracy, Buz Sawyer, Blondie, and King of the Royal Mounted. Ironically, one of the longest running strips apparently never stepped over to the comic book field. Why Little Orphan Annie didn't show up remains unknown.

Following the television popularity of the 1950s, the comic book publishers fell in line. Westerns were the leaders here as Gunsmoke, Wagon Train, and Maverick started showing up beside the older line of comics. Right beside the main westerns were the lesser-known shows like The Restless Gun, The Rebel, and Brave Eagle.

Over a short period of time, there were more than 60 different comic books stemming from the western theme TV shows. This followed the time Roy and Gene and some 30 other movie cowboys had their own comic adventures.

Many other non-western TV series also showed up on the comic book racks. “I Love Lucy,” “77 Sunset Strip,” “The Real McCoys,” and “Leave It to Beaver” were just a few.

A tidbit of comic book history reveals that Benjamin Franklin created the first editorial cartoon in an American newspaper in 1754.

In 1895, a series called "Yellow Kid" started appearing and it has been cited as being the first actual comic strip. It was the first to use the balloon for the characters' spoken words.

At first, all the strips were comical and humorous in nature. This resulted in the term “funny papers.” This stuck even after the serious titles like (space adventure) Flash Gordon, (the jungle's) Tarzan, and (cowboy) Red Ryder joined up.

The longtime dime novels and the popular pulp adventure magazines started giving up space for the comic books in the late 1930s. The comic business was growing at a fast pace.