Tootsie Roll Theatre Now Open!

I've renovated brand new gallery space and, though work is not complete, I'm pleased to announce the Grand Opening of the Museum of Comic Book Advertising's Tootsie Roll Theatre. The exhibits you find there are inspired by the comic book ads that mimic the content of the comic books that surrounded them. These ads were all presented as comic strips, mini-adventures where entertainment and marketing merged. If superheroes saved the day, they needed energy, and what better source for that energy than a delicious Tootsie Roll.

Currently featured in the Tootsie Roll Theatre are several comic book ads created by legendary golden age artist, C.C. Beck. Beck's work on Captain Marvel helped define the comic book industry in the 1940's. These ads, featuring a blond Captain Marvel clone, produced in the same era as Beck's most important work with Fawcett Publishing, demonstrate Beck's talents at their commercial best. We also display a couple of installations from the "Tootsie Roll of Honor." These short "morality plays" present the stories of young heroes who were able to save the day thanks to the energy that Tootsie Rolls provided.

By the 1940's, Tootsie Rolls had already been distributed for over 40 years. Tootsie Rolls pioneered this unique form of advertising and became a familiar product to all Americans. It became a part of the rations given to American troops in WWII and in its honor, we dedicate new gallery space. Please click on the picture above. I hope you enjoy this glimpse of a unique form of comic book advertising.

Other New Comic Book Ad Exhibits

I’ve reached back to True Comic’s eighth issue from January 1942 to look at the movies of the day as presented in the True Comic Movie Guide. Most of us look fondly on at least one movie released to theaters that month. Disney’s Dumbo leads off the reviews that cover offerings from Laurel and Hardy, Bob Hope, and William Holden. You will recognize many of them if you’re an old movie buff. If you're not, you may find an interesting rental for your next lazy weekend.

Since I pulled out that issue of True, I felt compelled to construct an exhibit for the Red Ryder Saddle Carbine ad from the back cover. Daisy Air Rifles would become a advertising staple for the growing comic industry and this ad from early 1942 was among the first. The ad introduced us to the toy that every boy wanted for Christmas, a highly realistic Daisy Air Rifle. In the light of the ongoing control debate, this advertisement from the Daisy Manufacturing Company, in Plymouth Michigan takes on new meaning.

I also found time to put together an exhibit for an ad from Target Comics, January 1947. Schwinn Bicycles were a regular advertiser and providing stable income to the comic book industry. This ad is a very early example, and its stilted copy reflects an uncertainty of how to connect with readers.

In the downtime, I noticed several web sites linking to the Museum, and we always appreciate the promotion (it really helps in search rankings). In particular, I noticed several hits coming from the comicqueens blog, and from a mention in the X-Ray Specs blog spot. Many thanks to both for helping spread the word. We still get a lot of hits from a press release posted for us on the International Comic Arts Association web site. Any support in the form of links from web sites is always appreciated. Please contact me via email if you can help.

Thanks, again, for coming back. Enjoy the new exhibits or go back and look at displays that you may have passed by the first time. Check back often, I hope to be putting up exhibits with increasing frequency.

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Visit the War Ads Display. Please take some time to wander around.

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The History and Art of
Comic Book Ads!

Welcome to a unique place on the web. This virtual museum is designed to bring you history, insight into American culture, and, most importantly, enjoyment. For some, what you will find inside will be nostalgic. For others it will be a look at a time in America they have never seen. The Museum of Comic Book Advertising contains exhibits of interest to those who love comic books, as well as those who may never have read one.

If you have an interest in the art of comic books, we hope that you will find the Museum of Comic Book Advertising to be a great comic book resource about a unique aspect of comic book art; the art found in the thousands of ads that supported and sustained the industry.

However, even if comic books are of no interest to you, we hope you'll find our museum entertaining and informative. Comic books are a unique American art form and the products and ads that supported this mass medium demonstrate the lifestyles, mindset and concerns of Americans over a 65 year history. This museum tries to place all the ads depicted, and the comic books that published them, into a historic perspective, relating them to current events from the era in which they were produced.

Many of the ads you will find inside are from the "golden age" of comic books, 1938-1955, when the comic book art form was in its commercial infancy. Those ads describe products and services long since forgotten. Those ads, and how they marketed to an eager reading public, form a chronicle of a nation as it moves into World War II, on to victory, and through post-war prosperity.

Inside this museum, you'll find a look at the products and service that claimed to amuse, improve life, inform and entertain. Through this comparison and contrast of the products and ideas that appeared in comic books over the years, we hope a unique picture of the dramatic changes in American society over the last 65 years, begins to emerge.

A Modern Way to Present Old Ideas

This site designed to be "hands-on" and is highly interactive. To take full advantage of the displays in here, please enable javascripts and pop-up windows. No ads, only museum displays, will ever be displayed in pop-ups.

Like a bricks and mortar museum, there is no one correct, linear way to explore this museum. Navigation is not conventional, but allows you to wander about the museum as you see fit, finding some of the best exhibits tucked away in nooks and crannies. So explore and let yourself wander. The Hall of Covers provides a convenient way to begin, but if a poster for a particular exhibit attracts your attention, click on it and see what that exhibit has to offer. Wander about, get lost in the displays, but most of all, have fun. Check back periodically as new ads and new exhibitions are being added constantly.

This virtual museum is under construction, and you may find dead ends or blind alleys. Not to worry. The museum is a large place with many exhibits to be found so click your way through. The museum is currently open for testing and feedback. If you have a comment or problem, please email the curator. Please include information about your browser type, operating system as well as your asthetic comments.